The Shooting
by Beauty Queen Piper
Summary: The Shooting happened two years ago. Police were left baffled to whom could have broke into the school and killed 7 students and 1 teacher. They've investigated for 3 months but had no results. Many suspects were considered to be the shooter but all were dismissed with lack of evidence. The shooting would have been left a mystery if the shooter haven't leave one crucial mistake.
1. Prologue

**AN: Sorry, I haven't finish my entire story yet so there might be some shifts between major/minor characters. However, these characters below should be the ones that features most through-out the story. If there's any new characters or whatever..I'll make sure I'll introduce them and I'm really sorry if these characters are a bit OCC :p Anyway enjoy!**

Main Characters

**Percy Jackson**: Captain of Goode High's swim team. He is currently dating Annabeth after a terrible break-up with Rachel when she got over-obsessed with him. Now he is on good terms with Rachel but he isn't sure how long that would last for.

**Annabeth Chase:** The 'smart' girl in the group. Many people are surprised that she is dating Percy Jackson. She has a knack of calling Percy 'Seaweed Brain' as Percy loves to swim a lot. Her close friends often tease her for being so 'innocent'.

**Grover Underwood:** Percy's best friend. Has an obsession with the environment and hates it when people contaminate it. Was sick the day of the shooting.

**Nico Di Angelo:** One of Percy's close friends. He is dark and mysterious. Police often suspect he knew something about the shooting due to his personality but never found evidence that he actually knew something.

**Jason Grace:** Was in coma since the shootings until now. Police suspected he knew something so the shooter attempted to fatally kill him but failed. Instead, Jason got a head wound that led him into coma.

**Piper Mclean:** Piper's closest friends know that she liked Jason. Piper knew that one way or another, she's going to get Jason. It really won't be much of a problem two years ago since they were really close. In fact, she was sure they would have been an item. Too bad Jason had to fall into coma two years ago.

**Leo Valdez**: He got the charms, talent but no girl is interested in him. Or maybe it's because all the girls he have crushes on are 'out of his league'. Really…like Khione, a senior from last year isn't too old for him. It's true that he was only a Sophomore then with two years between them..that doesn't mean she could ignore him for somebody else.

**Reyna Jennings (AN: I don't know her last name):** She loved Jason. True. Piper loves Jason. True. Jason could only have on girlfriend. True. Reyna couldn't help but remember the moments she shared with Jason two years ago. They were so romantic….Reyna would do anything to get those moments back.

**Hazel Levesque:** She was a new girl two months after the shooting. She had no idea about this until she arrived at school and saw burly security guards in front of the gates. What? She wouldn't have move here if she knew everyone was so paranoid about the killings. It's a good thing everybody got over it….but what if somebody brings the case back on?

**Frank Zhang:** Use to get bullied a lot as a 'Chinese Canadian Baby Man' at his old school. He transferred to Goode High hoping for a fresh start. Being transferred a few months after the shooting, he knew he had nothing to do with the killings.

Minor Characters

**Thalia Grace:** Jason Grace's older sister. She was in a relationship with Luke before he disappeared.

**Rachel Elizabeth Dare:** Has a huge crush on Percy Jackson. Not well-liked but she always speaks the truth.

**Clarisse La Rue:** She is keen to find out who the shooter is and strangle him or her as her ex-boyfriend Chris Rodriguez died in the shooting.

**Juniper:** Grover's girlfriend. She is a new girl ever since the start of term. She always gets freaked out when something unusual happens and hates horror movies.

**Drew Tanaka: **'It Girl' of school after the shooting - until she moved to California a few months later as her dad got a high paying job there. She came back to New York recently.

**Gwendolyn Barker (AN: again, I don't know her last name):** Doctors considered it to be a miracle that she survived a shot in the heart two years ago. She currently a graduated student of Goode High.

**Katie Gardner:** Travis Stroll's prime victim but also the girl he have a not-so-secret crush on.

**Travis Stroll:** Travis developed a crush on Katie ever since sixth grade and he'll do anything to grab her attention.

**Connor Stroll: **Nobody ever trusts Connor Stroll. He's just too devious.. like his brother. But there's one thing about Connor his close friends knew, Connor would never lie if the situation is huge.

**Miranda Gardiner:** Katie Gardner's best friend. She took a bullet on her chest during the shootings two years ago. Luckily, the doctors are able to remove the blood clot on her chest and she survived.

**Mr. Brunners:** Teacher at Goode High. Annabeth Chase is his favorite student as they both love discussing about the Ancient Greeks and Romans.

**Judge Zeus:** The celebrity judge in town. He is judging the shooting of Goode High until his children became involved in it.

**Judge Hawkin:** Another famous judge who took over the Goode High Shootings case after Zeus was dismissed as his children became involved with it.

**Doctor Marshall:** Jason's doctor. He monitors Jason's conditions.

Dead Victims

**Ethan Nakamura**: First victim to be killed. Nobody really knows anything about him as he confines to nobody and often hangs out alone.

**Silena Beaugard:** "It Girl" of school before the shooting. She was popular, pretty, nice and flawless. Many people are jealous of her as she is just so perfect. Was dating Charles Beckendorf whom she likes to call 'Charlie'. Killed right after Beckendorf died.

**Charles Beckendorf**: Popular because of dating Silena Beaugard. Died protecting Silena from a bullet.

**Zoe Nightshade:** Fourth victim to die. Well known around the school for hating boys. She refused to do anything with boys and avoid talking to boys.

**Chris Rodriguez:** Jake Mason saw the shooter shoot him in the stomach. Somehow, Chris fell dead after the shot in the stomach. Police believe it's because of this unsettling nerves.

**Lee Fletcher:** Was recording the incident until the shooter shot him in the head. The video was never found.

**Mrs. White (aha..for those who don't know, she's one of the teachers from Goode High…):** Was found dead in the corner of her classroom. Nobody saw her died.

**Luke Castellan:** Disappeared after the shooting. Police assumed he died and the killer for some reason hid his body. His body is never found. Some believe he was the shooter but no evidence was ever found.

**Prologue:**

"So is the date on tonight?" Silena took Beckendorf's hand lightly into hers.

"Sure." Beckendorf looked over at Silena. He is still amazed how he managed to get Silena as his girlfriend. Silena of all people, it's like a dream that would never come true. "I'll pick you up at 8?"

"Yup!" Silena smiled happily. "You can even come a bit earlier." she hinted.

Beckendorf laughed. "I'll come as soon as possible."

Zoe groaned as she walked behind the love birds. "What does Silena see in him?" she complained to Katie. (AN: Sorry, I decided for Zoe to speak in modern English as it'll be just weird if she spoke in Old English at school)

"I don't know but they're such a cute couple!" Katie cooed. "Anyway, you don't see anything in all boys! You hate them for some reason."

"Isn't it obvious?" Zoe looked astonished. "As a girl, you should know all boys are disgusting little liars!"

Katie laughed. "Liars?"

"I'd encounter with one of them in my past and he is a liar." Zoe shook her head.

"One of them.." Katie frowned. "There are other ones out there!"

"Don't worry, Kat." Zoe gave a rare smile. "You'll meet a boy later in your life that will let you down."

"Ew! Stop it! You sound like this weird oracle. It's starting to creep me out." Katie shuddered.

"Come on, let's go. I don't want to stand behind some ughs." Zoe groaned as Silena pulled Beckendorf into a kiss.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So this camera has high resolution and everything?" Lee Fletcher fiddled around with his new camera.

"Of course! I made it myself!" Jake Mason boasted.

"How do you even make these camera stuff?" Lee asked.

"My dad taught me." Jake looked at Lee as if it's very obvious. Oh right, Jake's dad. He's an excellent engineers..or technician…whatever you call those people.

"So you're giving it to me. For free?" Lee's eyes pleaded.

"Sure." Jake shrugged. "This is only one of the models to the one I'm trying to make."

"Thank you so much! I could totally hug you right now but it'll look gay." Lee opened his arms then immediately shut it.

"Dude….even that is gay." Jake raised an eyebrow as Lee turned on his camera and started recording the hallway. "Are the corridors suddenly so interesting?"

Suddenly, the school gates was blasted open. Lee turned his camera towards the school gates as a tall hooded person walked into the school. Lee couldn't exactly see who that person was. He or she is covered in black from head to toe. Except the person was holding a gun positioned in front of him/her. The mysterious figure pulled the trigger of his gun and a bullet flew out of the gun narrowly passing Jake hitting a portrait of the Princelpal.

"What. The. Fuck?" Jake Mason dropped the screwdriver he was holding and bolted out of the hallways. Lee Fletcher followed him while unknowingly, taking a shaky video of the shooter reloading his gun.

The school bell rung. Not once, but three times. A signal for students to conceal themselves in classrooms, lock the door and remain silent. This bell had never been rung before so everyone knew something serious was happening.

Ethan Nakamura descended down the stairs. He knew he needed to hide somewhere. He knew the shooter was after him. Since everyone went upstairs, the killer is less likely to search downstairs.

Basement? No. That is a very obvious place to hide. Ethan was sure the shooter would search there.

Ethan did a mental calculation in his head. The shooter bursted through the gates around 5 minutes ago. If Ethan is right, he should have already gone upstairs via the first staircases. Hopefully, the shooter thought Ethan is heading upstairs to where everyone else are. Going down to the corridor should be safe….

Allowing himself to be seen clearly. Ethan moved stealthily across the hallway. Although he was sure the killer is gone, it's better not to make a huge amount of noise.

CRACK! Ethan froze. A few yards in front of him stood a hooded figured dressed in all-black. No, it could not be. Ethan panicked. He wanted to run but he knew it'll be useless. There's nothing he could do now. Staring into the hooded figure, Ethan knew who it is.

A wild, dangerous smile form onto the killer's mouth as he raised his gun and ruthlessly shot Ethan with one loud clear BANG. Ethan's heart stopped as his body fell back.


	2. Amnesia

"Oh my god! Jason, are you alright?" Reyna rushed into the hospital room. Ever since she heard from Doctor Marshall that Jason woke up from coma, she ran there as fast as she could.

"Reyna?" Reyna looked up and scrowled as she saw Piper Mclean standing next to Jason's bed.

"Hey." Reyna muttered. It's wrong to assume that Reyna and Piper aren't friends. In fact they were, just not particularly close ones. They hang out in the same group and everything but they both knew that they loved Jason. If Jason hadn't been in coma for the last two years, Reyna could have sworn she would have become Jason's girlfriend. However, Piper had a different story. She claimed that if Jason haven't been in coma, Jason would be hers. Nevertheless, they both don't know what would have happened since Jason fell into coma.

"He just went back to sleep." Piper whispered. Reyna nodded. She knew it wasn't exactly Piper's fault that Jason woke up when Piper was here but went back to sleep just as Reyna arrived but she couldn't help feeling jealous.

"Is he alright?" Reyna asked. Even though Reyna despite Piper for loving Jason as much as she did and often avoided asking Piper questions about Jason, she knew Piper won't let anything bad happen to Jason.

"He's fine, I think. He just opened his eyes and went back to sleep." Piper replied keeping her eyes on Jason. Reyna looked uncomfortably around the room. It's getting awkward.

"Visitor's hour is over!" a nurse came into Jason's room abruptly and glared at Piper and Reyna. "In fact, it was over five minutes ago. You should have known that. Now out!"

Reyna sighed as she and Piper sauntered out of Jason's room. She could have came earlier if it weren't for her Latin lessons. She only got less than three minutes with Jason, and they weren't even alone. In fact, Jason wasn't even awake.

"Reyna?" Piper called softly.

Reyna looked up. "Yeah?"

"When Jason fully wakes up from his coma, can we call it a truce fighting over him for a least two months?" Piper asked.

What? What is this? Did Piper have some evil plan up her sleeves? What if Piper wanted Reyna to stop fighting over him so she could take him all for herself? This sounds so..un-Piper-like.

"I mean, he got a lot to catch up from two years and I just don't want to pressure him with his love life yet." Piper said persuasively. "You know it's best for him."

Best for him? Maybe Piper is right. As much as Reyna wanted Jason to be hers, she didn't want to hurt Jason. Maybe it is better to relieve him from his love life while he catch up with other stuff first. Damn, why does Piper always have to be so persuasive.

"Okay." Reyna nodded slowly. "Truce." she held out her hand for Piper to shake. Piper shook it firmly and smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I heard your bro is finally out of coma." Nico blushed as he saw Thalia. Blush? You might be thinking 'oh Nico blushed cuz he likes Thalia!' but no. Nico swears that he doesn't like Thalia that way. It's just that Thalia is well..intimidating. First of all, she is a senior. And really, it's her personality. She always have that rebel kind of attitude Nico admires. Never mind, you might take it the wrong way if he elaborates further.

"Yup." Thalia nodded. "I haven't visited him much, you know. I think Piper and Reyna have been though."

"Is everything okay with him? Like did he became totally weird after two years in nowhere or I don't know, what is coma?" Nico shrugged. He knew coma is something like a deep sleep and shit but really, he isn't the type who investigates stuff as deep as coma and sleep. It just doesn't make sense to him.

"Oh that." Thalia's face fell. "The doctor said he got amnesia by a head blow."

"Amnesia? Like he lost his memory? All of it?" Nico questioned. What? This can't be true. People only have amnesia in movies, right?

"I'm not sure. Hopefully, his memory would come back but the doctor said it might take a while." Thalia had a determined look on her face. "Or if his memory doesn't come back, I'll force it to."

Nico laughed. This isn't exactly an appropriate situation to laugh but it's just Thalia. Even Nico knew you can't force a memory to come back but this is how determined Thalia is when something bad happened to someone she loves like her brother.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Jason!" Leo bounced beside his best friend's bed excitedly as Jason opened one of his electric blue eyes. "How are you feeling, man?"

"Who are you?" Jason frowned. "I don't know you."

Leo grinned. "Are you trying to get me back for putting jello in your sneakers two years ago? I mean, that's two years ago. Thought you'd be over that."

"What?" Jason's eyebrow went up confused.

"I take that as…you've forgotten about that?" Leo shrugged. "Okay, what is it now? What have I done to you cuz I seriously forget what I do two years ago."

"Two years ago? I don't know you." Jason insisted.

"Fine." Leo rolled his eyes. "If you want to play this game, I'll play along. Hello, Jason. I'm your best friend. L-E-O. Leo. Got it?" Leo said slowly.

Jason blinked. "Okay, Leo."

"You seriously don't know who I am?" Leo waved his hands in front of Jason's face.

"No?" Jason looked at Leo doubtfully.

"Well, I could use my old jokes on you again! What are we waiting for?" Leo grinned.

"Leo!" Percy entered the room and pulled Leo back.

"What?" Leo protested.

"We can hear you from outside. You were really loud!" Annabeth hissed. "Anyway, he doesn't remember you!"

"Oh, so you're in the game too!" Leo groaned.

"You didn't know? He got amnesia! Doctor Marshall said he doesn't remember anything from the last three years. Which means he was still in middle school at that time and you didn't know him yet!" Percy quickly filled Leo with the details.

"You serious? Amnesia? Doesn't that only happen in….movies?" Leo laughed nervously.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, "No?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay. Who are these people? I think I woke up and saw this pretty girl with choppy brown hair beside me. I'd never seen her in my life.

"Jason!" she cried.

"What?" I managed to mutter quietly. Maybe too quietly as my eyelids flutter back to sleep. Who is she and how does she know my name?

Maybe a day later, this boy that looked like Latino's Santa Elf came along and introduced himself as Leo. I could swear on anything, I don't know him either but he had this crazy idea that I was playing a game with him pretending I didn't know him.

Gosh. When would things go back to order? And nobody explained to me why I am in a hospital bed. I tried asking my doctor but he just ignored me. How rude. The nurse? Why do I even need a nurse? If you ask me, I'm perfectly capable to going down to whatever cafe they have here and get those crappy hospital food. In fact, I could get out of this hospital now. I'm feeling fine.

The door cracked open. Ugh, what is it going to be now? A girl claiming to be my long lost sister?

"Jason!" a girl with spiky black hair ran in smiling.

"Who are you?" I stared at her as a skinny boy with scrawny black hair came in after her.

"Thalia. Don't you remember me? I'm your sister." Thalia laughed. "Long lost, you can call it."

Bingo. Some long lost sisters. I feel so psychic. "So you're my lost long brother?" I looked at the boy behind her.

"No." he shook. "I'm Nico. Nico Di Angelo."

It was like a thunderstorm hit me. Nico. Nico Di Angelo. Wasn't he the one who only comes to school whenever he felt like it? "Hey, Nico!" I was relieved that I knew somebody.

"So do you remember me?" Nico's eyes were shining.

"Of course!" I scoffed. "How could I forget the person who had this huge crush on Emily Reece?"

Nico blushed. "Um..actually…I don't like her anymore."

"Fat chance." I laughed. "Anyway, why do you look so..old? I mean, no offense but it's like you have an age lift."

From a corner, my supposedly to be long lost sister although we look nothing alike except for the eyes laughed. "Emily Reece." and bursted out laughing again. Okay. This is awkward.

"You should look at yourself." Nico handed me a mirror. Ew! I look like I was in high school. Not that high schoolers are ugly or anything but it's like I missed out 3 years of my life.

"Does he know yet?" Doctor Marshall stepped into the room.

"Know what?" I asked impatiently putting down the mirror.

"Um..no." Nico shook his head. "Although I'm sure he's wondering why he looks so old now."

"Did you do some plastic surgery to my face?" My eyes widened. "I don't want any surgeries!"

"Right." Doctor Marshall nodded and turned to Thalia. "I can see what you mean. So how do you suggest to break it to him?"

Thalia shrugged. "I don't know. Use Nico? He doesn't even remember who I am."

I was starting to feel pissed. They're acting like I'm not even in the room and remember? I never met that girl in my life before.

"Hello?" I said annoyed. "I'm still here, you know. If you want to talk about something I don't know about, please take it outside." I gestured towards the door.

"Uh..well." Nico scratched the back of his head. "Jason, how old are you?"

"Duh! 13?" I raised his eyebrows. "We are the same age."

"Damn." Nico muttered and gave a bright, cheery fake smile and said "What if I told you, you are actually 16?"

"The fuck? No, I'm 13! Is this some kind of joke?" I looked at Nico suspiciously.

"What Mr. Di Angelo is trying to tell you is that you are, indeed 16. Two years ago, you suffered from a head wound which led to your brain having some problems which caused you to have amnesia." Doctor Marshall explained.

"Amnesia?" I laughed slowly. "Doesn't that only happen in movies?"

Nico nudged Thalia and whispered. "I told you."

"Unfortunately, no." Doctor Marshall stated. "We believe you have lost three years of your memory due to the head wound. To help us recover your memory as quickly as possible, we must know what the latest memory you own."

I thought deeply. It's kind of hard. It was like having a really long sleep and forgetting everything that happened. (AN: Sorry, I don't know anyone or have coma before so yeah..I don't know how that works)

Wait, isn't there one time Reyna got a D in her report card threw a huge fit? No, how about the time where Gwen injured her ankle? I think that comes after Reyna throwing a fit after her poor grade. How about the time where Dakota drunk too much kool-aid and had to go to the hospital?

"I don't know." Jason said truthfully. "Maybe the time where Nico tried talking to Emily but got really scared and Emily thought Nico lost his voice?"

Nico's face turned red. "That…"

Thalia laughed as Nico blushed harder.

"Do you remember what day it was?" Docter Marshall asked. I shook my head.

"That was the last day before Christmas holiday during Grade 8." Nico muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Aww. Nico still remembers that exact date." Thalia giggled.

"Shut up!" Nico's face went beet red again.

"Do you recall any accidents, minor or major that happened to Jason that day?" Doctor Marshall inquired.

All of us shook our heads.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Judge Zeus looked across at Principal Stones of Goode High. "What? This case could earn me millions of dollar! You have no idea."

"I'm sorry." Principal Stones shook his head. "Jason is your son! We can't, I'm sure nobody would allow you to judge a case if your son is a part of it."

"Part of it? He's not! He had nothing to do with the Shootings!" Judge Zeus insisted. How dare that Principal even thought that Jason would know something about the Shootings.

"Being a victim of the Shootings, he might remember facts about his killer and whatever he says would be marked as evidence." the Principal reasoned. "You being his father might want to protect him, change his point of view or manipulate his thoughts."

"Me? I'm a judge." Zeus squinted his eyes. "A well-known one. I know what is appropriate to do and I would not do such things."

A knock came from the door. Principal Stones sighed. How can he convince Judge Zeus to quit this case? They already got Judge Hawkins taking the case after Zeus. Of course, Zeus was a better judge and it was extremely hard to get him two years ago. However, it's even harder getting rid of him. Zeus is worried about the amount of money he lost as apparently, he quitted two other cases to do this one as it involves the school his children go to. It's simply not right allowing a judge to still be judging an on-going mystery while his son could be a witness of the case. "Come in."

Mr. Brunners walked into the meeting room making eye contact with Zeus. He looked worried and seemed to have something important to announce. "Sir, I thought you, both of you might want to know something about Jason."

"What?" Zeus snapped. "Did you finally realize he is not a part of the shooting? He just unfortunately appeared at the wrong place in the wrong time? I bet the shooter isn't even meant to shoot him."

"No." Mr. Brunners paused. "Your son got amnesia. The doctor thinks he had forgotten the last three years of his life, which included the Shooting. He probably won't have any impressions of it so he would not be able to provide and sorts of evidence."

Zeus glared at Principal Stones. "Seeing my son got amnesia and won't be able to serve as a witness. Can I still be the judge of your friggin shooting?"

Principal Stones realized he had no reason to say 'no' to Zeus. "Fine." He rubbed his temples gently trying to relieve the muscles around his eyes and walked out of the meeting room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~How the fuck to I get a proper line-breaker?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OMG! First chapter and I already gotten 6 favorites and 7 followers? That's like..so fetch! Gawsh..watching Mean Girls last night is really getting into me.

Anyway, although this chapter hardly has any drama in it or whatsoever, I hope you enjoyed it :) I'm going to update the next chapter (which I hope would include stuff you won't see coming) as quickly as possible to hook you all back into the story..Review!

Kisses, Emily


	3. Bodyguard

NEW CHARACTERS:

Brittany Parson

Megan Leighton

Chelsea Tait

~~~~~~~~~ xoxoxox ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brittany entered the door code slowly. 6-4-1-9. Beep. Incorrect. What could be wrong? She remembered the code off by heart ages ago. It could've have change. She haven't receive any texts lately. She jammed the numbers harder. 6-4-1-9. Beep. Why the hell isn't it working? 6-4-1-9-6-4-1-9-6-4-1-9, Brittany stabbed the keyboard impatiently. No, this could not be happening. They're waiting for her inside. Exasperated at another unsatisfying beep, Brittany kicked the door with all her might. God damn this. She kicked it again and an unfamiliar whining sound came from the security system of the building. Shit, what had she done?

Holding her breath, she waited until the whining noise was over. She heard footsteps traveling down the stairs. Brittany's eyes widen as the door opened silently.

"God, Brittany! What have you fucking done to the door?" Thank god. It's Chelsea.

"What's the password?" Brittany asked urgently. "Six-Four-One-Nine isn't working!"

"Password?" Chelsea scrunched her forehead. "I don't know. He changed it a week ago, remember? But he didn't tell any of us. He said we might be in danger."

"Right." Brittany glanced outside quickly. "Is he inside?"

"Of course. Come in." The girls closed the door quietly as they crept up the staircases. "He's waiting for you."

~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~

You can say Percy Jackson is hard to kill. Paul Blofis, Percy's stepdad is a teacher at Goode High. Percy's real dad, Poseidon is an admiral of the US Navy. What happened to Poseidon, did he die? No, actually. Sally Jackson and Poseidon split as Sally felt Poseidon wasn't a great dad as he is always away on important missions. Their last day together isn't what you're probably imaging. They weren't arguing, throwing books at each other or ignoring each other. In fact, they were trying to get one last perfect family moment, but Percy doesn't like to talk about it.

When Percy is young, his dad always spends his free time, however rare they are teaching Percy how to defend himself, shoot a gun and these survival stuff. With the expert training from his dad, he could dodge very well, run fast, swim like a fish etc. If you have Percy on your kickball team, you're almost bound to win. There was a rumor that the killer of the Shooting tried to kill Percy but failed as Percy escaped in various ways, depending on which version you listened to.

Maths is one of the only things, Percy reckons could kill him. Listening to Mr. Randell explaining the problems is just torture. How can you find the 'x' and 'y' side of this triangle? And how on earth do you find angle 'g'? Everything seems impossible. Percy glanced over to Annabeth - probably the only student actually paying attention and jotting notes.

"So who got the answer?" Mr. Randell asked. Annabeth's hand was the only one which shot up. Mr. Randell frowned at the rest of the sleepy students and said. "I need some new hands."

A crackle came from the PA system. "Can you hear me?" one of the reception ladies cleared her throat. "Can Percy Jackson. I repeat, Percy Jackson report to the Principals office? Thank you."

Every pair of eyes in the room went on Percy as he made his way towards the door. They were all whispering 'what have he done' or 'ooh, he's in trouble!'. Annabeth gave mouthed silently 'What did you do this time?" Percy gave a shrug as he went out of the room.

"Come in." the Principals' drone came from the room as Percy entered the office and sat at the comfy blue chair across the Principal. The room was nicely furnished. Percy can tell you from experience, it's a lot better than his stepdad's office. Everything was so serene and boho in the office, it's like the Principal had hire some feng shui expert to refurnish everything. Percy could imagine the soothing sound of the waterfall going along with the picture of Santorini at one corner of the office. There were green plants which gave off a bit of an earthly sense to it and the blinds were open exposing the baby blue sky and fluffy white clouds. The only part that didn't quite fit in was the Principal's desk. It was scattered with important-looking documents and folders. Paperwork were messily thrown across the table and there is just a teensy space for the principal's desktop and space for him to write on. Percy guessed the Principal deliberately made the surroundings so calm to not stress him out.

"What did I do?" Percy asked curiously. He remembered not being a part of any Leo's wacky schemes this term. He remembered refusing Nico's little 'rebel scheme'.

"You know Jason had woke up from coma, yes?" Principal Stones's eyes bore on Percy as he nodded. Duh! He was one of Jason's best friends. "Look at this." Principal Stones took a scrappy piece of paper under the piles of school documents and handed it to Percy. Percy unfolded the paper and magazine cutting appeared on it. The magazine cuttings made out a few sentences.

Jason. You know too much. It's a shame I didn't get to kill you two years ago.

Percy handed it back to the Principal as he placed it inside a locked drawer. "This was found on Jason's hands when he is sleeping earlier. We're not sure if Jason read this note yet as he is still asleep. Anyhow, I have many reasons to assume someone is after Jason and might threaten his life." he paused and looked at Percy.

"Does your classmates call you 'invincible'? I heard you're extremely good at saving yourself in dangerous situations." He opened a document and read. "Nico Di Angelo once called you 'Achilles', probably because you're like Achilles, unfazed at war. Leo Valdez calls you 'the man' after being on the same team as you in paintball matches and Annabeth calls you 'Seaweed Brain' because..nevermind."

Percy blushed. "How do you know all these?"

Principal Stones smiled wryly. "I have my sources. Anyway, you are called these names for a reasons. Why would they call you that?"

"Oh." Percy gave an awkward smile. "I don't normally talk about this but it's because my biological dad, Poseidon use to teach me all kinds of ways to save myself in situations. So yeah, I know how to use a gun so naturally, I'm pretty good at paint balling. I could dodge and hide really well too." Percy thought it seemed like a pretty appropriate place to gloat and maybe exaggerate his skills a bit. Hopefully, he impressed the Principal quite a bit so he can..you know, maybe get him an 'A' for Maths? Now, Percy's getting an average of 'D's and according to Annabeth, it's not going to get him into a good university.

"Can I ask you a favor?" Principal Stones looked at Percy. "This is completely your choice as the job I'm going to assign is dangerous and might cost your life. I would totally understand if you don't want to take it but it's about Jason."

"What is it?"

"The hospital has to send Jason away very soon as he is taking up the hospital facilities that could be given to people in need. Jason is no longer needed in the intensive care as he is out of coma but since he lost his memories, he would still have to visit the hospital for treatment on weekly basis. When he go out of the hospital, the world can be very dangerous to him. Especially when he lost his memories and have this threat under him." The Principal gestured at the locked drawer.

"I would need a bodyguard like person around Jason. His dad suggested getting him one of those buff Hollywood stars guards but the doctor didn't think it's a good idea for somebody like that to go around with Jason. Jason might feel uncomfortable around this stranger. And personally, I think it'll put spotlight on him. Not many people around New York walk around with a muscly guard next to him so everybody would know he is protected and that is not good under the circumstances of the threat. I thought having a friend of Jason who is strong enough to take care of himself and probably Jason too would be a perfect replacement of the 'bodyguard idea'. You fit perfectly in the criteria."

"I take the offer." Percy said suddenly.

"Are you sure, Mr. Jackson." Principal Stones's gazed out of the window. "Don't you need time to think over this huge decision?"

"I'm sure, Principal. It's my friend." Percy insisted firmly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up and saw Percy Jackson. How did I know him? I didn't, but he introduced himself a few days ago and said 'he was one of my best friends before I got amnesia'. I don't know if I should believe him or not but I don't exactly got a choice since I'm brainwashed.

"Hey." I said.

"Hi!" He cheered unnaturally. "How are you feeling? Safe? I mean, okay?"

"Yeah. Um. Okay. And safe too." I added. Safe? I'm not in a dark alley. I'm in a fucking hospital with two guys around 40yr old on both sides of the room. They always seem to be sleeping.

"So anything..unusual these days?" Percy asked.

I laughed. Unusual? My whole life is currently upside-down. "If you call waking up one day in a hospital and everybody tells you you are two years older than yesterday normal. Oh yeah! Have I mention a whole group of strangers like you come inside and act like we're best buddies but really, I haven't seen you in my life? No offense, to you of course."

Percy looked quite awkward. "Right. I understand. I mean, I don't understand like I've experienced this before since I haven't but…" he stuttered.

"What's up with you?" I asked. "I don't know you for that long but this is definitely not you. You're usually more confident and stuff."

"Nothing's wrong." Percy gave a huge smile. "I'm totally fine! Trust me! I'm like feeling 100% super duper! Yay!"

Okay…something is definitely going on…

~~~~~~~~ LINE BREAKER ~~~~~~~~

Reviews:

Guest - Really? I don't think it's working… :\

Ares'sBestLittleTaunter- Teehee! Yeah :P BTW..love your pen name!

ArcheressxX- Yay! I'll try to :)

Angel Daughter of Nike- Thanks! and again, I'll try to!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ xoxooxoxoo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for all the reviews and new followers and stuff! OMG, you guys are like awesome! But it'll be absolutely amazing if you can review more? Right now it's just doubling the amount of reviews…LOL. Anyway, I'll try to update sooner and stuff but right now I'm really busy with schoolwork. Ughs. And my friend just told me she had to do this huge spinal operation thing so wish her luck 3 I'm worrying sick for her...

Kisses, Emily


	4. Sky

"Where's Jason?" Piper glanced at her watch nervously. "I hope he's not lost again. Last time, the police found him on the street and it got…complicated."

Thalia checked her phone. "We haven't got any calls from the Police Station yet so I'm guessing he's still good." They were with Percy, Annabeth, Leo, Grover, Nico, Hazel and Frank at Percy's house. Reyna had to do something urgent for her History teacher, probably for extra credit.

"Do you have enchiladas?" Grover rummaged through the fridge in the kitchen.

"Grover, we've been through this. My house isn't your enchiladas source once you're out of your house!" Percy looked annoyed. "We only have enchiladas when my mom buys them and she didn't."

"Damn." Grover shook his head disapprovingly. "So, you were telling us yesterday Principal Stones hired you to be Jason's personal bodyguard?"

"Well, not exactly." Percy paused. "I'm not really his 'bodyguard', but yeah, I have to look out for him and stuff."

"So you decided to invite us to go around town with Jason and you?" Nico sighed. "You don't go anywhere around town except for the pool and the marine museum."

Percy looked offended. "It's not like I'm bringing Jason to the pool or the museum. He doesn't even like the ocean."

"So where are you bringing him?" Annabeth asked curiously.

"I don't know." Percy shrugged. "The mall?"

Leo's eyes darted around the room. "The mall?" he repeated as he got up and took a framed photo on top of a cabinet. "Won't Santa be there?" he grinned as he passed around a photo with Percy around 4 years old on top of Santa's thigh crying.

"Hey, just because I was four at that time and the elf taking that photo has a creepy bull-style nose ring, tattoos all over his face and all these stuff you don't even want to know about doesn't mean I'm afraid of Santa! Why did they hire that guy to be Santa's Elf?" Percy said defensively.

Hazel laughed and put her arm around Frank. Awh! Piper's heart couldn't help soften. They are such a cute couple.

Piper looked at her watch again. Jason is more than half an hour late. Normally, Piper won't care if someone is late. It's not like she's super-bored or something, they're just hanging out. However, this is Jason. Last time, when he was late, it didn't turn out so well. Some police thought he was just a hobo but some got so extreme, they pegged him as an illegal immigrant. Piper didn't even know how they could make such assumptions from a guy looking lost on the streets.

Ever since Jason got out of coma, Piper couldn't help but want to impress him. She knows she had made a deal with Reyna not to pressure Jason into choosing between them but it won't count as pressuring him if he just got a natural crush and ask Piper out..right? Piper won't want Jason so bad but it's like somebody is out there teasing her. Walking around New York everyday, at least she sees five of those really cute couples that seem like they're going to last forever. Ever since Jason came back, Annabeth and Percy seem to be cuter than ever and now there's Frank and Hazel who are just perfect for each other. Every bit of this is making Piper want Jason next to her. She missed Jason for two years and now, Piper just couldn't explain how she felt. Would it be better if Jason stayed in coma?

* * *

A+, A+ and B. What? B? Reyna looked carefully at her report card. B. That is impossible. Reyna is an over-achiever. She never, ever get any marks below A. Getting A's would guarantee her a great university. Something like Cambridge, Oxford, Stanford etc. Her sister, Hylla got scholarship to more than 5 Ivy League Universities. Living up to her standards as a younger sister is almost impossible but that's what everyone who knew them expects.

Her mom would kill her. Her dad would be so disappointed. Hylla? Well, she would just look at Reyna and say in a sickly sweet tone "Oh my god, Reyna! That is too bad for you! Try to work harder next time!" over the phone. Reyna knew Hylla didn't mean it. She knew Hylla would love to say "You'll never meet my standards, bitch." but it'll ruin her picture-perfect sisterly image.

"There must be something wrong with this." Reyna grabbed her report card and thrusted it in front of Mr. Freyers. "I couldn't have got a 'B' "

Mr. Freyers looked at his list of grades. "Nope, I graded your work. It's a B"

"But, how can it be? I have researched on World War Two thoroughly, created a presentation A-worthy and even added my version of Anne Frank's diary entry as a bonus!" Reyna protested. "If this is some kind of joke of yours, it's not funny. April Fools Day is months away."

"You know me, Ms. Jennings. I never joke." Mr. Freyer's gaze bore on her. "Now please, I have a meeting to attend."

"I can't leave this room with a 'B'." Reyna shook her head. "Is there something I could do? I could throw in..I don't know, research about Adolf Hitler's playmate when he was 5?"

Mr. Freyers tapped his watch. "I'm sorry. The deadline is over, I couldn't simply extend it for you to add in something like Adolf Hitler's friends during his childhood. It's not fair to others. Imagine how many people would come and demand me to extend their deadlines if I gave you extra time. Now excuse me, I have to go."

"Please!" Reyna pleaded weakly as Mr. Freyers walked out of the door.

"Ms. Jennings," Mr. Freyers paused outside. "Don't be too hard on yourself. It's a tough project, only Ms. Chase got an 'A'. I'll see you tomorrow." then he continued rushing across the hallway.

Reyna's heart couldn't help but burst in jealousy. Annabeth is just so perfect in every way, so perfect it hurts. Who got an 'A' in History? Annabeth. Who was chosen to be President of the Debate team - a team Reyna was most devoted to? Annabeth. Who never had any boyfriend issues? Annabeth. Nobody competed against her for Percy. She is like the 'Hylla' of Reyna's grade.

Oh, why is she friends with Annabeth? Reyna never really knew, maybe it's just because they hung out with the same people. Or Annabeth never gave her reasons to be hated. To be honest, the only person Reyna feels really connected to in the group is Hazel. Piper would have been great if they weren't after the same boy.

What is she going to tell her parents? Having 'B' in her report card won't do.

* * *

"Nico, read the text again." Piper ordered as Nico took his phone out.

"Meet me at the mall, in front of the fountain. Sorry, I couldn't make it to Percy's house" Nico read. "He should be here."

Piper groaned as her eyes didn't meet anybody like Jason around the crowded indoor fountain.

"Is there another fountain here?" Frank asked. "Maybe he thought it was suppose to be that fountain."

"Nope." Grover confirmed. "Only one fountain here. Unless you count the one outside."

"Meet me at the mall, in front of the fountain." Hazel repeated. "He didn't say indoors or outdoors. Maybe he is outside wondering where we are."

"Does somebody want to go out and check?" Thalia shrugged and sat down at the fountain side. "I'm just going to sit here until he decides to show up."

Piper immediately volunteered. "I'll go."

"I'll go with her." Annabeth walked towards the double sided automatic doors. "Come on."

Piper's eyes wandered around the huge mall as she and Annabeth made their way out of the doors. Maybe she'll spot Jason somewhere. Accidentally, she bumped into a teenaged boy in front of her.

"Oh, sorry." Piper muttered and looked up.

"Piper?" The boy asked surprised.

"Sky?" (AN: aha..just watched Mama Mia so I decided to name him after the character Sky there. Oh my god, Mama Mia is amazing) Piper blushed. "I..I thought you were in London."

"I came over for a holiday. We had a break from college." Sky explained. Piper blushed further. Sky was her middle school crush. At that time, Sky was in high school and he was just the person all kind of girls would go after. His messy brown hair and chocolate eyes could melt the heart of any girl and his freckles were just oh my god. With his intelligence, wits and charm, everyone loved him. Piper felt butterflies in her stomach.

"How's college." Piper asked trying to break the growing silence between them.

"Not bad." Sky suddenly looked into Piper's eyes which gave her jitters. "There's a party at Ashley Taylor's house next week. Do you want to come along?"

Piper turned beet red. Did he just ask her to go to a party? A college party at Ashley Taylor's house? Ashley Taylor is one of the most popular girls in the neighborhood, the whole neighborhood looks up to her. Even some older women tries to be like her. There are rumors that companies like Victoria's Secret hired her to model their products but as Piper never knew Ashley personally, she didn't know if they were true or not. All she knew about Ashley are from Google and gossips. Although Sky didn't exactly ask her to come together to the party, she'll be in this party with Sky and Ashley. How many kids out there would die to be invited to Ashley Taylor's Party?

"Sure!" Piper smiled trying to hide the excitement bubbling inside of her.

"Awesome. I'll pick you up at 8?" Sky winked and sauntered away. Piper's eyes fixed at him as he walked towards the mall as Annabeth pinched her shoulders.

"Hello, Piper?" Annabeth called.

"Yeah?" Piper blinked dreamily.

"Jason?" Annabeth looked at Piper with the look. Right, Jason.

"He doesn't remember me." Piper sighed. "And he was pretty close with Reyna three years ago and they actually knew each other. It's an extremely minor chance he'll like me anyway. Plus this isn't a date or anything. He didn't ask me out. He just invited me to a party and offered to drive me there."

* * *

We write. We Dream. We Fly. Thanks! and yeah, I know I'm crap at tenses.. :\ English isn't my first language but I got a friend who's pretty good at it to check my stories now. Thanks for your advice! :)

* * *

Sorry, I didn't get to upload for a long time. Homework :( Anyway, I should be uploading more often as we got a break from school.

Kisses, Emil


	5. Hypnotized

"Just lie down on the bed and you'll be fine." Doctor Marshall said in a calm voice.

Jason felt relaxed in the Doctor's private office. If Jason could only use one word to describe the room, it'll be 'white'. Everything from the fluffy carpets to the cool ceiling is white, or at least have hints of white in it. In addition with the soothing classical music played softly in the background, it's the place you would want to go if you are stressed.

However, Jason isn't stressed. He is there to get hypnotized. Police, detectives, private investigators, basically anyone who had investigated the case of the Goode High Shootings believed he is the key to who the Shooter is. Ever since Jason woke up from coma, he had been getting emails, letters, messages, texts, all kinds of things from these people asking his permission to be hypnotized. As Jason has amnesia and is currently unable to remember the events in the Shooting, they thought hypnotizing him could make him tell Doctor Marshall what happened. To make sure Doctor Marshall is telling the truth of what happened, there is a recorder lying beside the bed ready to record every noise Jason makes during his time being hypnotized.

Lying down on the bed and facing the milky white ceiling, he felt sleepy. Perfect for being hypnotized. "Now, take a deep breath and count to ten." Doctor Marshall murmured in his monotoned voice. As Jason did what he was told, the Doctor seemed to be getting something out of his pocket. Once Jason counted to ten, the Doctor looked into Jason's blue eyes intensely and said "Look into my eyes until I say something."

Jason met the Doctor's burning brown eyes. Soon, Jason began to feel drowsy, Doctor Marshall's brown orbs seemed to spin round and round and round. "Jason, close your eyes and think of a 'happy place'. Somewhere you feel safe in. Somewhere you consider paradise." Jason thought of the typical idea of paradise. The serene waves collapsing on seaside rocks, the clear blue seawater and the setting pastel colored sun at the very horizon. Somehow, this seemed very life-like, almost like Jason had been there before. Where did this place remind him of again?

Jason can hear an even-tempered voice from nowhere. "One, two, three, four, five.." the voice trailed far away and faded in the pleasant sound of waves crashing. Jason found himself walking along the white beach, there was nobody with him. It's very unusual for beaches in New York to be so..empty. Plus, Jason could have sworn, New York beaches aren't so quiet and peaceful. Jason didn't remember going to any beaches except for the dirty, overcrowded ones in New York. He didn't really like the ocean that much.

Suddenly, a pretty brunette appeared in front of him. She looks familiar..kind of like Piper, the girl who is supposedly to be one of his close friend. She walked beside Jason silently, their footsteps making the only marks in the smooth sand. It seemed like forever but Jason knew he wasn't there for long.

* * *

"Did you get the results you want?"Jason asked curiously.

"No." Doctor Marshall shook his head. "I tried asking you what happened during the two years which you couldn't remember anything from but all you said was something about black stuff and nothing."

"Interesting." Jason nodded. The beach had nothing to do with anything black, During the time he had been hypnotized, black did not come up in his dream.

"You can leave now if you want." Doctor Marshall shrugged and handed him some salted biscuits. "Here, eat these if you're feeling uneasy. They might help you feel better."

Without another word, Jason took the biscuits and left the office. He closed the freshly painted white doors and quickly munched the biscuits. Realizing his shoelaces were untied, he knelt down beside the door and tied them slowly.

"I told you, Boss. He said nothing. I swear!" An exasperated voice traveled through the door. "Yes, I know you told me to swap the recordings but really, why bother?"

Jason grew interested into the conversation. Normally, he isn't an eavesdropper but this seemed to be concerning his recordings. Leaning into the door, the voice grew louder. "Hold on." Beep! Doctor Marshall's voice turned malicious and sly. "Hello. I think I got something that you might want."

"You know what it is. Don't ask me 'what'. After all, you started it."

Jason froze. Started what? He had this feeling inside that it had something to do with him and the recordings.

"Wait. I heard some scratchings outside of my door. You never know." Footsteps drew closer to Jason as he jumped stealthily from the door behind a wall just around the corner and held his breath. A crack of the door opened as Doctor Marshall's face peeped out. "Nope, sorry. Might just be a cat. Now.." The door closed and Jason sighed with relieve. Whew! That was close. No longer listening to Doctor Marshall's phone calls, he crept down the office building's stairs and left.

* * *

**Okay, so let me get this straight. I had never been hypnotized/hypnotized somebody or know somebody who had experienced either so whatever I mentioned above of how Doctor Marshall hypnotized Jason is purely what I found on Google and I incorporated some of what I thought might work in a real hypnotism thing.**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to Review! :)**

**Kisses, Emily**


	6. Karma Will Catch Up

"Are you sure this recording is legit?" Lawyer Brown's serious green eyes bore into Jason's electric blue ones.

"Well, I guess." Jason's eyes tried to escape from Brown's but is failing. "I mean, I was technically asleep the whole time. I was dreaming then I woke up. I assume it is real."

"Had it ever occur to you that this tape may be tampered with?"

"No." Jason lied slowly. Since he had overheard Doctor Marshall, he had suspected that Doctor Marshall was doing something wrong to the tape of Jason's hypnotism but he wasn't ready to say it out loud. Jason felt like he had to do some investigating himself first.

"Are you sure?" Lawyer Brown said patiently. "Tell me the truth."

Jason nodded as he heard the lawyer mutter something like "You better not lie. If I win this case, I can finally bring my wife to Malibu."

Giving a huge sigh, Lawyer Brown said "Well, I suppose I have the answer. I'm not sure if it's the one I wanted, though."

"So you want me to lie to you and say that Doctor Marshall tampered with the tape and stuff?" Jason questioned.

"I'm not sure if I can trust Doctor Marshall." Lawyer Brown stated. "He does have a very…dodgy past. What happened to Megan Leighton is very unfortunate."

Megan Leighton…the name sounds oddly familiar to Jason. "What happened to her?" he asked curiously.

Brown seemed very impatient but decided to tell Jason. "I'm not entirely sure, but it was huge at that time. In fact, it was on the news two years ago which you probably won't remember. It was around a month before the Shooting, I think. Sergeant Tait of the FBI department was shot in the shoulder and left unconscious three months. Apparently, after the three months he reported to us that he did not remember anything that happened that night."

Lawyer Brown paused then continued. "Megan Leighton, this girl around your age was found next to him. Everybody thought she shot him despite the fact Megan doesn't know or have any relation to him. Later, it was found out that Megan suffers Aspergers Syndrome and could not be capable to assault Tait. Again, lawyers, judges investigating the case of Sergeant Tait thought maybe if they ask Megan what happen, she'll provide good alibi since she was near the crime scene. When Megan refused to tell them anything, Doctor Marshall hypnotized her and tampered with the tape to make it seem like Megan killed Tait but luckily, due to an anonymous tip, the truth was discovered."

"So why did you use him again to hypnotize me?" Jason asked.

"He's the only one that is capable on hypnotizing." Lawyer Brown admitted.

"Had it ever occur to you on getting witnesses during the hypnotism?" Jason raised an eyebrow.

"It had. However, he claimed that he couldn't hypnotize people with an audience."

"If he doesn't have an audience, how do you know his hypnotism really worked?" Jason pressed on.

Lawyer Brown seemed annoyed at all these questions but as it was Jason's right to be answered truthfully, he replied. "2004. He hypnotized a 5 year old named Hannah Pennington and due to the evidence produced by the hypnotism, the truth was discovered."

* * *

Piper went to Ashley Taylor's party with Sky. Not really, with Sky as in a date, but as in going together into the house. Everybody in the party were in high school and Piper didn't know the majority there. Most of the time, Piper hung out with her clique and nobody from her clique was in the party.

However, people knew who Piper is. Occasionally, a few of them would come over and say 'hi' to Piper. Piper found it extremely awkward but said hi anyway. It wasn't like she had anything better to do. All she did was hung around the food areas and pretended like she actually had people to talk to in the party, except she was getting food.

The plan worked out pretty well until Ashley Taylors made her way to Piper. "Hey Piper, is it?"

"Yeah." Piper blushed. What is Ashley doing here? What does Ashley want with a girl like Piper? Not that Piper is complaining, it's pretty cool having the Queen Bee even speaking to her.

"How do you like the party?" Ashley asked casually.

"It's good. Nothing like I've been before." Piper confessed. Looking around the room, a quarter of them were drunk, a bunch of guys were trying to flirt with girls etc.

For Piper, it was pretty crazy as she limited herself to parties with only 30 people or less. It won't do her any good going into any parties with more than 30 people in it anyway. Her dad being Tristan Mclean meant paparazzi stalking her technically 24/7. She didn't want any encounters with the paparazzi that might make the public think in a way Piper doesn't want them to think about her. For example during Grade 4, Piper paired up with two local geeks for a school project (blame the teacher). While they were putting the project together in the public library, a whole crowd of paparazzi came inside and snapped photos. On the next day's gossip mag, "Piper Mclean loves geeks!" was on the headline.

Ashley grinned. "You haven't seen what it's like normally. I honestly don't know why they're so calm and quiet today."

What? Piper wanted to exclaim but immediately stopped herself. Was it cool enough for Ashley if she haven't been in a wild party before? Instead, she forced a laugh.

"Anyway, tell your dad that if he needs any extras for his new movie, I'm free." Ashley winked. "It'll be totally awesome to work in a set with your father."

Piper knew that Ashley didn't exactly came here to have a chat. They barely knew each other. Finally, Piper realized what made the it girl came. Tristan Mclean's new movie 'Peter Johnson and the Lightning Thief'** (AN: haha…go ahead and make fun of this but I really don't know what to do)** is rumored to be a big hit like his previous one 'King of Sparta' which gained all his fame.

"Sure." Piper nodded twirling her messily chopped brunette sides nervously. "I'll ask him."

"Just in case," Ashley rummaged through her Prada bag, got a sparkly diamond pen and wrote a telephone number on Piper's arm. "Here's my number."

* * *

"We didn't spend millions of dollars putting you in Goode high ~ the most elite high school for you to get a B!" Mrs. Jennings shouted angrily. "B! Not even a B+."

"I'm sorry." Reyna looked glumly towards the ground. She had been expecting all this anger from her parents but she didn't know what it actually felt like. All her life, she had been in the top, even in Kindergarten she wrote the nicest set of alphabets.

"Look." Mr. Jennings grasped the report card tightly. "Talk to Mr, Freyers, do extra work, I don't care what you do but if this grade doesn't improve by next week, you're over. Probably no universities would accept you and you'll have to be a McDonald's worker."

"Aren't you exaggerating a bit?" Reyna asked mildly. She was sure one slip-up won't turn her into a McDonald's worker.

"Listen to me, young woman." Mr. Jennings glared at Reyna. "I'm talking over here, not you. Now go to your room and don't bother coming out for dinner. Stay there and reflect on your poor grades."

Reyna sulked miserably as her footsteps slowly led to her room. Never in her life had this happen and how will she ever convince Mr. Freyer to give her extra time to lift her grade?

Beep! Feeling cross at her parents, Reyna checked her IPhone. A message from Hylla. Reyna groaned, what can it be now? A taunt? A bitchy reminder than she is always better? Clicking on the message, she read silently.

"I heard what happened and I know how to help you"

* * *

The burly assassins were starting to annoy Percy.

They should have been gone 5 hours ago when he called the police but somehow, they managed to get out of the police's grasp. They should have been gone 3 hours ago when Percy trapped them in a locked cabinet but they got out of that too. They definitely should have died an hour ago when Percy witnessed them being ran over by a garbage truck.

Percy started to think that these killers were immortal. Nothing can beat them, they just seem to pop out from nowhere shooting bullets at him again.

On the other hand, the killers couldn't kill Percy. They shot bullets, threw knives, did everything illegal but somehow, Percy escaped. Maybe it's because of his dad's self defense skills, or maybe just sheer luck. Percy thought he is the one who needed protection now, not Jason. Jason seemed perfectly fine over the weeks and nobody tried to kill him.

Thanks to those assassins, Percy had wrecked his favorite shorts, got onto the wrong side of his school janitor and had to cancel his date with Annabeth to go to the police station and give descriptions of the assassins. Apparently, that haven't been enough. The assassins were still behind Percy with killer blades.

"Look," Percy tried to reason while running away. "What do you even want from me? This morning, I was watching a goddamn movie when you broke into my house and attempted to shoot my head. I ran away obviously because I don't want to die and you guys have to chase me around New York."

"I'm not telling you anything until we catch you." One of the muscular dudes said monotoned. The exact same reply Percy got every time.

"Catch me? You probably would have killed me before you caught me." Percy scoffed dodging a flying spear.

"Stop running, Percy Jackson." The other buff dude said plainly. "Karma will catch up to you sooner or later."

Karma, what? Percy was pretty sure he'd never done anything so bad he deserved two powerfully built killers ruining his day.

"What do you think karma would do to you if you kill an innocent boy?" Percy challenged.

"Innocent? You're blood is dirtier than the Mississipi River. Which if you don't know if one of the word's most polluted-"

"Okay." Percy interrupted. "But I'm pretty sure science would back me up in this point. If my blood is as dirty as that river, I would be dead."

"Shut up, Percy Jackson. Oh, by the way, what time is it?"

Percy looked at his watch hurriedly. "6. 6pm."

"Is our shift over?" One of the killers asked.

"I hope so." Percy muttered.

"Yeah." Percy heard the heavy footsteps of his killers stopped. "I suppose we should head back now. Good bye Percy Jackson."

Without another word, the killers disappeared into a dark alley. What? Percy is confused. So these two sturdy buff guys had been trying to kill Percy since 12 am than they stop after 6 because their 'shift' is over? Although Percy isn't the brightest kid you'll ever meet, he figured out that somebody paid the killers to slaughter him but didn't pay enough for them to continue after 6. Even Percy admits that it's ridiculous

* * *

**You probably see what I did with the beginning of Percy's part. (Just in case you don't know, reread the first chapter of the Son of Neptune) Yeah, I'd thought it would be pretty cool to add that in :P**

**Heehee! So this chapter got into the more action-y side of the story and some secrets would be revealed soon. Again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter so don't forget to REVIEW! :)**

**~ Kisses, Emily**


	7. Brad Marshall

Annabeth was flipping through the Goode High Yearbooks. She wasn't looking for anybody in particular, just passing time. Besides, Yearbooks do tend to get amusing when you're looking at how you friends looked like before.

For example if you looked at Bianca two years ago, you really won't expect her to turn out the way she did. Two years ago, she had hair covering her eyes and she looked miserable? Anyway, now her hair is pushed back showing her beautiful dark orbs and you can tell that she is really confident. Piper is the exact opposite, she looked around the same as she did two years ago - pretty, hot and innocent. Reyna changed a bit but the competitive gleam in her eyes remained the same and Rachel..she looked like she had a makeover.

She used to have dull and washed-out red hair, a somewhat depressed set of green eyes and wore over-large clothing that barely fit her. Now, her red hair is frizzy and bright, her green eyes sparkle and she looks a lot more attractive. The Rachel two years ago would be typically picked on but this one would be hit on.

Wait..Annabeth stopped herself. Rachel? Two years ago? No. Rachel wasn't even in Goode High until last year. Why is she thinking that this..stranger is Rachel? They hardly even look alike. The only similarity they had is 'red hair' and they aren't even the same type. Annabeth didn't know why but she thought that she knew it was Rachel. She felt something that told her it's Rachel but that's impossible.

Curiously, she looked down at the name. Top Row: Kyle Preston, Mariah Bree Lane, Rachel Elizabeth Dare...

* * *

Percy couldn't sleep. There isn't a lot on his mind but he just couldn't.

Maybe it's because his room was too hot, or maybe it's because Sally was watching TLC Cooking Shows loudly. He was definitely tired, his legs still ached from running away from those killers last week. Why did they chase after Percy, he had no idea. They didn't leave any hints or come back. Percy supposed the best he could do was forget about that crazy day.

"And this is how you make Chicken Cordon Bleu. Mmm! Look at the crispy golden-brown coat!" the TV blasted. Percy used his pillow to cover his ears.

"Coming up! We have a quick demonstration of Eggs Benedict by-" Sally turned the TV off and sauntered slowly towards her room. Finally! Percy thought as he closed his eyes. A full minute almost passed as Percy's eyes shot open. Even without the TV, he couldn't sleep. Sighing, he got out of his comfy warm covers and turned the air conditioner facing him. A cool breeze fell on him rhythmically but it's still not working.

Feeling frustrated and bored, he sent a quick message to Annabeth. She's probably asleep but Percy thought it worth a shot.

BZZ! Percy's phone vibrated almost immediately, his heart raced a beat as he picked up his phone. Maybe Annabeth is awake!

"Did you like the little chase my friends set you on last week? Don't worry, that's only starters."

Huh? Chase? Percy's mind immediately found it's way back to the memory of him trapping the muscular strangers as they tried to kill him with a gun. Starters? What the fuck?

Tapping on his IPhone, Percy found the number that send him this text. Blocked Number. Damn, now Percy can never find out who send this number without more police investigating why Percy wanted to track this person. Last week, when the police questioned Percy about his killers, he didn't know what to answer. After all, he had no idea what happened. He answered all the police's questions truthfully but Percy suspected that none of them believed him.

"Are you sure, you don't know who they are?" the police asked for the millionth time.

Percy shook his head.

"How did this begin?" the police inquired. Same old questions. Percy told them the whole episode honestly again.

"Do you mind repeating what you had said just now with our professional investigator?" the police asked in a way Percy knew he had no choice but to say 'no, of course I won't mind!'

And after the private investigators, Percy had to repeat the story to some head of departments, some minor journalists etc.

None of them. Nobody believed him. They just looked at him like he was some psychopath but since he was their only source of this episode, they had to say they believe Percy in front of him. Behind him, Percy knew they were agreeing that his story doesn't make sense. Percy doesn't blame them. It didn't even make sense to him.

* * *

"And I saw somebody that looked like her." Annabeth muttered and showed them the Yearbook.

"Oh my god." Piper exclaimed. "I..I never recognized her."

"I said somebody like her." Annabeth said quickly. "Doesn't mean it is her."

"But it looks totally like her." Hazel protested. "It..nobody can look so alike unless they're identical twins!"

"Alike?" Reyna raised her eyebrow. "They are like the before and after version of a really good makeover!"

"Even if somebody got a makeover, they're still the same person." Piper argued.

"You should ask her about it." Reyna urged.

Annabeth shook her head. "She alway changes the topic when we talk about her old schools and stuff."

"Besides," Hazel added thoughtfully. "It's her choice whether to tell us or not."

Reyna rolled her eyes. Really? Why won't they just ask Rachel? It's nothing big, anyway.

* * *

Jason's investigating work isn't going too well. By not too well, he should be saying "no progress". He doesn't know where to start and what to do. For the past days, Jason had been watching stuff like 'Sherlock' and 'the Mentalist' to get him into the mood of investigating. It was so easy, watching the world-class detectives pick up clues and catch the culprit. In real life, it was almost impossible. Jason grinned, maybe he needed somebody like Doctor Watson.

What did Doctor Marshall do to the recordings? There were just so much questions on his mind.

Jason decided to start on who Doctor Marshall is actually. He heard the fascinating stories from Lawyer Brown about faking Megan Tait's recording and being the only person in the world to hypnotize successfully. Turning on his MacBook Pro, he went on Google and typed in 'Doctor Marshall'.

**Barry Marshall - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia**

**Marshall was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2007. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree by the University of Oxford in…**

Jason scrolled down. Barry Marshall is definitely not the doctor that had been treating him.

**Quantum Nutrition Labs**

**Listen LIVE to Dr. Marshall, PH.D. Dr. Marshall, PH.D. Radio Show Archives. Kapha Diet Kapha Dietary recommendations. Go To Top . "Twitter messages not…**

Jason clicked into the link.

**Get Fast Answers to Your Nutrition Questions**

No, Jason thought as he went back on Google. Definitely not it. Jason's eyes skimmed through sites. Dr. Deirdre M. Marshall - Plastic Surgery..nope. Orthopedic Surgery, not it. HealthGrades..what? After a few pages on Google, Jason realized that there are probably more than a hundred 'Dr. Marshall's out there. He doesn't even know the doctor's first name.

Usually, if Jason doesn't get his answer on the first two pages of Google, he gives up. Who actually look at the third page or those behind it unless you're really desperate? Jason had learnt from Primary School that if it's not on the front page or at the most the second page, it's crap. Jason felt tired as his eyes burned on the screen scrolling through doctors.

Click! Eighth page. Jason wondered if anyone actually looks at these pages. How is it so easy for somebody in TV shows like Bones to find information? They probably don't have to even click on 'next' in Google. Their suspect appears on the first link. Of course, it's a TV show so everything is staged but really, there got to be some detectives out there that can find a Wikipedia page or something on the person they're investigating on straight away.

Jason no longer felt the urge to find this 'Doctor Marshall' person. However, something kept telling him to continue like the answer isn't so far away. Jason highly doubt it. Page 12 on Google is still on a bunch of Doctors like 'Dr. Catherine Marshall' and 'Dr. Granville H. Marshall Jr'. Maybe he should just go up to his doctor and ask him stuff like 'Which university did you graduate from?' and 'Who did you first work for?'. It might make his sleuthing easier.

Page 13.** 'Dr. Brad Marshall, New York - Hypnotism'**

That sounded like the doctor that had been treating him. Feeling optimistic for once, Jason clicked into the site.

**Male, Aged 38, Graduated 1998, Harvard Medical School**

Harvard Medical School. Jason doesn't know which are the top ranked medical schools but almost everybody knew Harvard is one of the A-list Universities in the world so their Medical School must be outstanding. Aged 38, Jason chuckled. He seemed quite a bit older than that.

**Specialities: Treating patients with Amnesia and Hypnotism**

Perfect doctor for Jason. He is suffering Amnesia and needed hypnotism. No wonder his dad chose him to be his doctor.

**Awards and Recognitions: Dr. Marshall had gained world-wide fame for his accurate hypnotism in 2004 for the case of Hannah Pennington. Later, he helped numerous patients suffering from amnesia to recover their memories. However in 2010, he tampered the hypnotism tape of Megan Tait and served one year of prison. Now, he is attending to the case of Judge Zeus' son, Jason.**

Jason scrolled down curiously but the information on Dr. Marshall ended there. He was a bit disappointed as he was expecting a whole timeline of Dr. Marshall but it was still good. It gave Jason a bit of an idea, didn't Reyna say that her sister Hylla is currently in Harvard University? Surely, Harvard University and Harvard Medical School can't be so different and Hylla can help Jason with his investigation.

* * *

**In case you're wondering, the Google searches are real. I literally went on Google and typed in 'Doctor Marshall' and put in the results but obviously, on page 13, 'Dr. Brad Marshall, New York - Hypnotism' doesn't exist. Or if it does, that'll be plain creepy.**

**Oh, btw as you probably have already noticed, I changed my pen name from XxThe-CareersxX to Aphrodite-Cabin cuz I'm from the Aphrodite Cabin lol. I was going to change it to something christmassy due to my addiction to Christmas and my urge to go Christmas shopping this weekend but I realized that I'm going to have to change it right after Christmas or it won't really make sense….Anyway, I love reviews! (Major hint)**

**~ Kisses, Emily**


	8. What it takes for an A

Step One: Go up to Mr. Freyers with a batch of freshly baked cookies.

Reyna looked at her wooden basket with some chocolate chip cookies she bought from Allison's Bakery a few blocks down. She had bought it just now so the cookies are still warm and tasty. Reyna had no talent in cooking and it might not work if she came up with freshly burnt cookies.

"Mr. Freyers!" Reyna faked enthusiasm as she plastered a huge smile on her face.

"Reyna?" Her History teacher turned evidentially shock that Reyna is still around.

"I baked some of these delicious cookies and I thought I'd give some of them to you!" Reyna lied.

"Oh, thanks!" Mr. Freyers took the basket from Reyna's hands and picked up a cookie politely. "Mmm, they do taste like the ones I buy from the bakery around here."

"Really?" Reyna feigned surprise. "They do tell me I'm professional but there is always room to improve." she said modestly.

As Mr. Freyers started munching on his second cookie, Reyna quickly checked her phone for step two.

Step Two: Start a friendly conversation. Ask his how things are going etc

"So how's it going?" Reyna kept the warm smile big and bright.

"Not too well, actually." Mr. Freyers sighed. "I'd thought Miles would do better in his essay and Nadine..she's not going to be satisfy with the score I'm giving her but I have no choice. Her essay is not up to my standard…"

Reyna wasn't paying attention. She doesn't care about these students, she doesn't even know who they are. Freshmans? Seniors? Whatever.

"Luckily, Annabeth is still around. Without somebody decent like her, I don't know why I'm still around. I mean, only Annabeth exceeds beyond my expectations."

Only Annabeth? Reyna gritted her teeth. Is somebody out there playing with her? She had always admired Annabeth, respected her but not so much nowadays. Reyna had always played along with the rules, never a mistake or flaw but teachers seem to only recognize Annabeth. Even Percy. Reyna used to have a secret crush on him but guess who he liked instead? Annabeth, of course.

Reyna straightened herself. She can't be pouting in front of Mr. Freyers, after all she is the friendly student who secretly wanted to lift her grade. BZZ! Reyna's phone vibrated alerting her that Hylla had texted with Step Three. "Excuse me." Reyna manipulated her voice to make her seem sincerely apologetic that somebody had to text her during their conversation.

"It's alright." Mr. Freyers shrugged as Reyna took her phone and held it against her face.

Step Three: Start mentioning how hot his son is. He would absolutely love you if you would go out with that loser.

Reyna wanted to scream. She should have known that her sister had something cunning up her sleeves, why did Reyna listened to her? Because she's desperate? Is she desperate enough to go out the the residential freak? No. Reyna is not going to do this. There got to be some other ways but she needed time to think.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Reyna cried sadly. "My sister Hylla, which I'm sure you would remember her is in the hospital! I've got to visit her."

Mr. Freyers' hands fell on Reyna's shoulders sympathetically. "What happened?"

"I don't know." Reyna forced emotion into her voice and started hurrying away. "I really got to go now."

"I hope it's nothing big!" Mr. Freyers called after her.

* * *

Piper can't go on any longer. Seeing Jason almost everyday and knowing he is not hers - not even close - is getting into her nerves. Why did she even make the deal with Reyna? She was scared that Jason would go straight to Reyna when he came out of coma but obviously, Jason hadn't. Maybe she should just break the deal off and do what she was doing before the Shooting. This deal is suppose to last for at least a month but Piper don't know if she can do it. Hopefully, Reyna felt the same.

You can say Piper is a very indecisive person. She agrees 100% and she knew she'll have second thoughts about it sooner or later. Before she could gather points to argue with herself, she texted Reyna. "I think we should break the deal"

Piper didn't know whether Reyna would agree or not. Reyna could simply reject this proposal and call her weak for backing out on her own promise. It's ironic, really. Piper did think Reyna won't agree to the deal but she did. Maybe she'd want the promise to remain.

After hearing the familiar sound her phone makes when somebody texted her, Piper took the phone from her covers slowly. What would Reyna say?

"Agreed."

Piper let out a huff of relieve. She didn't know what else to text to Reyna so she put her phone away. At least, Reyna didn't make it hard for her.

* * *

"Why did you ask?" Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"Was just wondering. Really, it's just nothing." Annabeth answered cautiously. Although, Rachel is one of her greatest friends, she does have her moments and Annabeth does not want to tell her everything.

"It's alright." Rachel shrugged. "I know but it's false."

Annabeth's gray eyes widen. Know…how did she? She told nobody about it but her best friends, people whom she could trust with her life.

"Oh, Reyna told me." Rachel said casually as if reading her mind.

That bitch. Annabeth thought narrowing her eyes but immediately straightened herself. "Cool, but that's not what I told her." Annabeth rolled her eyes haughtily. Normally, Annabeth won't do this but she felt betrayed by Reyna. Reyna and Rachel aren't even particularly close friends, in fact without Annabeth, they won't know each other.

"It's nothing embarrassing anyway." Rachel said quickly before asking "So what did the teacher said again?"

* * *

According to his plans, Jason should be looking through Harvard Medical School alumni students online. However, he is currently in front of a huge mansion. He looked at his phone to make sure he was at the right place. The McLean Mansion, definitely.

He didn't know Piper that well and he certainly didn't know why Piper's house would be a mansion. Not that he's against mansions or anything, in fact it's pretty cool, but you don't really live in mansions unless you're famous or ridiculously rich. Even when Jason's father is such a well known judge, they don't live in a mansion. Piper doesn't seem rich, she doesn't use Prada bags or Tiffany bracelets like what wealthy people are thought to be used.

Jason rung the doorbell. He was expecting some high-class maids to come out like those old movies about rich people, instead Piper came out. No posh silk pajamas, elegant updos or anything. Just plain old Piper. "I never thought you live..here." Jason managed to say.

"Uhm..yeah." Piper looked kind of embarrassed. "My dad is…rich."

Jason decide not to press on anymore. She looked pretty nervous already. "So, what do you want to do?" Last night, Piper texted him and asked him if he wanted to come over to hang out. Jason agreed. He won't deny having a little crush on Piper but he wasn't too sure if Piper liked him back.

Piper shrugged. "Anything you want. We have anything you can think of."

"Private pool?"

"Yup!"

"Private movie box?"

Piper raised her eyebrows. "Definitely. What kind of celebrity won't have their own movie box to watch themselves on the big screen?"

"Woah. Celebrity?" Jason might be right about the 'famous' part.

Piper covered up her mouth like she had said too much but whispered. "My dad, he's Tristan McLean."

Jason nodded. He understood what's it like being the kid of celebrities. Everybody gives him unnecessary attention and treats him like he is something special when he isn't. Besides, there are the paparazzi and those celebrity gurus out there who just gotta know everything happening to you. Even as the son of a famous judge, he gets pestered by reporters, mostly to ask about his dad and how some new cases are going. Evidently, they still haven't got around the fact you're not suppose to share information about court cases to anyone, not even your family.

"That's why you have so many stuff." Jason said to break the silence.

"We even have a private beach." Piper said as if it's nothing.

"A private beach." Jason repeated. "In New York."

"It's not that big." Piper muttered quickly. "Let me show you." Swiftly, she grabbed Jason's arm and pulled him into the mansion. Their touch was like electricity but only Jason seemed to felt it. Suddenly, Jason felt self-conscious, he hope Piper couldn't see that he is blushing.

When Jason's mind finally tore away from the touch, he realized that he was in a cool, airy, big lounge. The color scheme of the room was definitely brown, dark ebony brown. Everything from the room was either brown, white or ocean blue. Although Jason doesn't usually comment on houses and furnitures, he can tell that these colors work really well together. The lounge itself looked like it had been designed by some extremely popular designers.

From a large window on the side, Jason could see the ocean. He wasn't sure if it's Atlantic Ocean or anything but the waves were clear and calm. Near the window, there were 3 freshly painted white steps leading down to another platform where expensive brown sofas were placed facing a 60 inch flatscreen TV.

The lounge itself was breathtaking, it was just like those mansions you see on TV. Jason could not imagine what other rooms would look like.

After allowing Jason a few minutes to absorb the magnificent room, Piper grinned. "Never seen anything like this?"

"Nope." Jason admitted. "So where's the beach?"

"Just out there." Piper held Jason's arm again, shyly. She paused for a few seconds then led him through a slide out door with a chocolate colored frame.

Soft white sand met Jason's foot. Not so far away, waves crashed upon the beach. There were pool noodles and floaties left on the side of the beach drifting slowly towards the water and in the corner, Jason spotted a little bar with wooden chairs and table. Although Jason was sure nobody worked in there, it looked like the missing person was only on a lunch break. Variety of drinks were left on the side of the counter.

"Wow." Jason breathed.

"Oh, it's nothing, plus this is kinda shared. People like Amanda Seyfried come over all the time." Piper assured him. "You should have seen the beach we have in this little island on Greece. That is sensational. Sometimes, I go there with my mom on a private jet. In fact, you've been there before.." Piper blushed.

After a few seconds, Jason realized Piper was talking about the time before the Shooting. Piper wasn't saying that she held a party there and invited everybody. She was saying that they've been there..alone. Due to his amnesia, he couldn't remember that night but it felt like that memory was trying to be triggered. Jason wanted to remember it. He wanted to know every bit that happened that day. He was sure that day was his favorite.

As Jason and Piper looked awkwardly into each others eyes. He figured out that he does remember. During his hypnotism, his dream was being in a beach similar to this one but the one was nicer and more tranquil. The pretty brunette was Piper and they had spent the whole day together in the beach.

"I remember it." Jason said quietly looking down at the sand.

"You do?" Piper sounded hopeful. "I thought you had amnesia."

Jason blushed. "Best memories like that don't just go away."

* * *

Nico is aware that the police had been keeping a closer eye on him than usual. New York is a place full of mystery and surprises. The police like watching their suspects to make sure they don't do anything dodgy. Usually, Nico laugh it off and tell people that the police judge him because of his appearance. Nico knew his slate isn't exactly as clean as his friends thought it might be, but still, he hasn't done anything illegal for a long time.

Nico's father is Hades. You would probably be thinking who is this Hades guy is but in the Criminal World or even the police force , everybody knows who he is. You can't say Hades is a criminal. If there is evidence for that, he'd probably be in prison already. However, Hades isn't a part of the police either. He's just around - except he knows everything.

Do you need information on some stolen purses or want to know who killed your great-grandfather? Hades had everything you need to know. It was rumored that the Di Angelo family kept a big book on great thefts of all centuries.

Nico gets a bad reputation from his dad. Apparently, he is the only one in the family who does so. His mom, Maria Di Angelo is more into modeling and fashion. Although his mother's fashion taste is gothic and dark, she gets along very well with Piper's mom, Aphrodite. Being a Top Model and one of Hollywood's most popular socialite, Aphrodite was able to make Maria admired in public.

Nico's older sister Bianca is currently in a high-class boarding school in England. Like all the stereotype English boarding school, nobody gives a fuck to whether Bianca is famous, pretty or rich. All they cared about is her manners, poise and elegance. Nico isn't sure if Biana just doesn't want to make a fuss or actually enjoys being there, she never complained.

While people who knew Hades thought he was interested in knowing secrets so he had positioned himself the way he did, only his family knew he was only interested in the money. A long time ago, Hades realized that secrets are one of the world's most valuable thing and by trading them, he'll earn lots of money. What Hades realized then was true. He is one of the world's richest men but as Hades have minimal contact with the public, nobody knew.

Hades also learnt that sometimes, information don't come as easily as he expected. Hacking into computers, eavesdropping, making quick phone calls usually give him what he needed but some criminals are more careful than others. Sometimes, he had to go and sneak into the crime spot to figure out something. With his quick and cunning mind, Hades followed patterns of convicts all around the world so he knew which of them did the crime straight away.

With this skill, Hades was wanted on the FBI force, criminal gangs, detective groups etc. However, Hades only wanted to teach Nico to maintain the family's name.

After Jason woke up from his coma and the case was revived, the police went straight to Hades for information on the Shooting. Of course, Hades knew who the Shooter was and what his or her intentions were but he also knew that this secret is too precious to give away. Besides, the police's price is never good enough.

As Hades refused the tell the police anything, naturally they turned their attention on Nico as they thought Hades would tell everything to him. Normally, this was true but as the Shooting was closely related to Nico, Hades knew it was best not to reveal the details to him. However, to maintain his reputation as being the Hades Jr, Nico often pretended he knew what was going on.

* * *

How dare she. Reyna is in rage. Right after Piper broke the deal off, she invited Jason to her house. Reyna isn't surprised if they were already a couple. Reyna could see the way Jason looks at Piper even when the deal is on. Partly, Reyna is mad at herself for agreeing to break the deal. She should have known Piper would do something like this.

In addition to that, she still has to get Mr. Freyers to give her an A for History. There is just so many things on her mind, Reyna wasn't sure if she could handle it.

Usually, Reyna's mind is organized and rational. However when she is feeling frustrated and stressed as she is now, she often has crazy ideas. Just as she is figuring a way to get out of this mess, one of her wicked ideas formed. This is something Reyna never had done but she knew it would work. She is not desperate enough to date Mr. Freyer's son and lose all her reputation but she is desperate enough to do something completely wild ..is she?

For a split second, she'll do anything for an A.

With a dangerous glint in her dark brown eyes, she got her phone and texted Leo Valdez.

* * *

**Hahaa….uhm so this chapter is kinda cheesy with the Jasper bit but I'm such a big Jasper shipper I really couldn't help it. They are just so darn cute together! asdfghjkl; Anyway, Piper's life is way too awesome now. Don't worry, she's gonna be miserable later ;) And just in case you're wondering, Piper's mansion and is my dream house. All you have to do is move it to LA or something and you'll find me living in it 20 years later.**

**Today, Taylor Swift's new album RED is released! :) So if you're a big swiftie like me..GO BUY IT!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	9. Halloween Special

**Halloween Special ~**

* * *

Jason made Piper swear not to tell anybody that he remembered the day where he shared his first kiss with her. I won't say I eavesdropped it. Eavesdropping is when somebody is secretly listening to a conversation. I'm not secretly listening, just merely walking by. Sure, they were on a beach with nobody visibly seen on it but this isn't the McLean private beach. People like me who have connections with celebrities or their families can just walk right through.

I'm sorry, I just can't keep secrets. It's simply not in my genes to do so. I could only keep one secret and that is my identity. Am I the Shooter? I wish, but no. That is somebody totally above me.

Promises. I did mention that I can't keep secrets, did I? However, keeping vows are my strength. I keep plenty of oaths. One of the promise I made is to break Piper McLean and that, I will achieve. Literally, break her.

And again, this is not the shooter.

* * *

"You do know about Piper's yearly Halloween parties, don't you?" Leo asked.

"What? No." Jason looked pretty confused. "She didn't say anything about parties."

Percy filled him in. "Piper has these Halloween parties where you have to dress up. Usually, a lot of people go there so it gets pretty crowded though."

"I'm taking Juniper to the party." Grover's eyes glimmered with excitement.

"So it's like one of those date parties where you have to get a date?" Jason questioned.

"Not really." Leo shrugged. "At least I go dateless."

"I'm thinking of asking Hazel." Frank muttered shyly.

"And I'm guessing you're asking Annabeth?" Grover nodded towards his best friend.

Percy nodded. "So Jason, are you going to ask Reyna or Piper?"

"What?" Jason shook his head. "Reyna? Piper?"

Leo sighed. "Man, it's no surprise that you like either of one them."

Jason blushed. He knew that he had a teensy crush on Piper but now they mentioned Reyna, she's not that bad. In fact, he suspected that he once liked Reyna. "No." He protested weakly.

Frank gave him a small, sympathetic smile and said. "You don't have to ask any of them if you don't want to. It's just that we are all fairly curious on who you like."

"Well, I like them as a friend."

Leo coughed. "Or more than that."

* * *

Percy and Annabeth were lounging in Percy's living room watching a show on National Geographic. Percy didn't recognize it but it was one of Annabeth's favorite. For the whole time, Annabeth's eyes were glued to the screen while Percy sat next to her wrapping his arms around her while using the other one to eat popcorn.

Percy would like to last on longer. His arm felt amazing around Annabeth, he didn't want to ruin the moment. However, he felt like it was the perfect time to ask Annabeth.

"Hey, uhm..Annabeth." Percy started nervously.

"Yeah?" Annabeth drew her attention from the TV Screen to Percy.

"I was just wondering…uh."

"Go on." Annabeth said a bit impatiently. Percy wondered if it was really the right time to ask her.

"Do you want to go to Piper's Halloween party together?" Percy blushed almost instantly.

Annabeth laughed, Percy wasn't sure if it was a good sign or not. They had only started dating over the summer and he never got to ask her anything like this before. "Of course I would, Seaweed Brain."

Percy noticed that she was using the nickname they gave each other since they first met on the first year of Secondary School. Annabeth didn't use it a lot nowadays but whenever she used it, it often implied that he was being dumb. Percy didn't get it. What part of his question was stupid?

"What?" Percy asked curiously.

"Nothing." Annabeth started giggling again. "What made you think that I won't say yes?"

"I didn't think that." Percy raised his eyebrow convincingly. "We're official, why won't you say yes?"

"You're such a kelp head." Annabeth sighed as she pulled Percy into a kiss.

* * *

"Did a Martian abducted the real Reyna or something?" Leo raised an eyebrow. "You want me to hack into the school systems change your grade?"

"Pretty much, yeah." Reyna looked nervous.

"Hack into the school system." Leo repeated. "I can't believe it. You're always like the perfect student who follows every single school rule even if it's as stupid as you can't go to the toilet the whole day. You would hold it and go after school."

"Not true!" Reyna exclaimed as her burning cheeks betrayed her. "Okay, but I'm desperate. You're the only person who can hack into the system."

"You know not even kids who have been getting an average of F every term ask me to hack into the system but you, just one little slip to a friggin awesome B asked me to."

"When are you going to start doing complicated stuff on your laptop? This is sort of urgent. " Reyna complained. "You know what? Do you want to get paid? Cuz if money helps you to speed up, I'll give it to you."

Leo shook his head. "Why would I want to be paid?"

"I don't know!" Reyna shrugged. "It's a motivation for you to start working."

"Okay." Leo muttered as he tapped some keys on his computer.

* * *

The Halloween Party at the McLean mansion was successful as always. Due to the popularity of Piper (partly because she's famous) and the amount of celebrity's kids that go to Piper's parties, a lot of people showed up. Some of them only did to meet celebrities and their kids then leave straightaway but the mansion is crowded.

To fit in with the Halloween theme, everybody had to dress up. Most girls were wearing slutty play-boy costumes to impress guys while some of the guys didn't even bother dressing up. It's not like Piper can monitor the entrance saying 'you're not wearing a costume, not invited' anyway.

Suddenly, everybody's attention drew to the door. Piper didn't quite understand their sudden interest in who's coming in. Normally, people just slip in and out without anybody noticing but whoever that is coming through the door had captivated at least a hundred people.

A pretty girl stepped in, Piper knew exactly who she is. Ashley Taylors. Piper had met her once at Ashley's party and they briefly talked, mainly because Ashley wanted to be an extra in her dad's new movie but nothing much.

Ashley Taylors never goes to any parties unless it's hosted by herself or one of her close friends. This is obviously a sign to everybody that Piper and Ashley are close friends despite their lack of communication.

"Dude, why didn't you tell me that you guys are BFFs?" Leo whispered to her.

"I don't even know we are." Piper shrugged. "We only exchanged one conversation and that is about being an extra at my dad's movie!" Suddenly, Piper felt self-conscious. Her parties are never really A-listed. Nobody does anything exceptionally wild as they might end up in the front cover of the newspapers. Would Ashley find this party too boring?

"Piper! Great dress!" Somebody Piper had no clue to whom they are went up to her and complimented.

"Thanks." Piper forced a smile on.

"Oh my God! That bracelet is gorgeous. Where did you get it?" Another girl Piper didn't recognize gushed.

"My mom gave it to me."

"Hey, Piper!" Piper turned around and saw Ashley.

"Hi!" Piper tried not to look as nervous as she is feeling inside.

"Nice party you have here." Ashley twirled a blonde strand of her hair.

"Thanks." Piper blushed.

"So I was wondering about the movie…"

"My dad haven't answered to my message yet." Piper said quickly. "I'm sure he'll be more than happy to give you a spot when he comes back from shooting a scene in Greece."

"Keep in touch." Ashley gave her a small smile and sashayed away.

Piper spotted a black ninja. She didn't know who's under the black mask but she thought it'd be cool to ask. Nobody had been that bothered about costumes in Piper's Halloween Parties before. As she made her way towards the ninja, the ninja was moving outside to a bathroom.

"Hey." she greeted the ninja.

"Hi." Piper can tell that it was a girl under the mask.

"How are you?" Piper gave the unknown girl a winning smile.

"Fine." She nodded towards the bathroom. "Can you come inside. I want to tell you something."

"Sure." Piper walked inside of the spacious bathroom with the ninja as the ninja locked the door behind them.

"Piper McLean, kiss goodbye to your boyfriend or more specifically, your life."

Piper felt a sharp object hit her head as her body collapsed onto the ground. On the bathroom floor, she slipped into unconsciousness as the ninja climbed out of the bathroom window.

* * *

"I have reasons to believe that you know who's behind this, Mr. Di Angelo."

"Piper is my friend." Nico said simply.

Police Leah smiled and said cockily. "You do know if we take this to court, you would have to tell us everything you know about this assault. And you would have to be honest."

Nico shrugged. "My dad knows everything. Why don't you question him instead? I'm just an apprentice."

"He refused to tell us anything." Leah admitted.

"So you thought if you would question somebody weaker, maybe his son you would get the answers?" Nico's dark eyes fell upon a shotgun behind the police's back. "Well, you're wrong. Why didn't my dad tell you who assaulted her? Maybe your price is too low or maybe you're just not worth telling."

Police Leah seemed to have noticed Nico's gaze upon his gun. "Okay, if I remove this gun from the room, would it make it easier for you to tell me?"

"No. Why would I be scared of guns? I practically grew up around them. Anyway, you can't use them. It's against the laws, isn't it?"

She sighed. Nico will be a hard nut to get any information out of. "Do you want anything? Maybe a milk to warm up?"

"I hate milk." Nico replied shortly like everybody should have been aware of this.

"What do you kids like these days? A McDonald's Happy Meal?"

No reply. Nico just stared blankly into space.

"Hello?"

Nico sighed irritably. "The Fifth Amendment clearly stated that your suspect, me, have the rights to remain silent."

"You're not a suspect." Police Leah explained. "You're just…somebody..like an eye witness! You provide information for us to investigate."

"And I don't get paid?"

"Fine." she took out her wallet. "I'll offer you the exact amount I offered your dad. $100 bucks."

100 bucks, US dollars is normally quite a handsome amount of money for a teenager. However, Nico grew up in an extremely rich family. He can get that amount of money within a snap of his fingers. "Really? That's why dad refused to tell you anything."

Leah is starting to get annoyed from this boy. She is merely a police officer who just graduated from University. One of her first assignments were to interrogate this boy. At first, she thought it would be pretty simple but Nico Di Angelo is one of the hardest person on earth to crack.

Coming from a relatively poor family, she remembered how $100 meant the world to her when she was young. Police Leah didn't know how to react to this boy who could throw $100 away like it's trash.

"So you're not going to tell me anything." she concluded.

"Nope!" Nico grinned cheerfully. "And I'm glad you understand."

* * *

**I hope you guys enjoy the Halloween special! However, I'm not sure if I'm able to update next week as my school camp is at that time...Don't worry, I'm going to try and finish another chapter to upload either before I go or when I come back :) **

**Anyway, Happy Halloween guys! And for those who are going trick or treating, grab all the candies!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	10. Luke Castellan

Jason sat next to Piper. It had been a while since he had been to the hospital since his recovery. He didn't like being in it, but he wanted to make sure Piper is alright.

After a day of unconsciousness, Piper still haven't woke up. The doctors said her situation is stable and she will recover soon but Jason isn't so convinced. Seeing her in the same position as she was knocked down is worrying him. Although, Jason hadn't knew her for a long time, he stayed beside Piper the longest. He felt like he was obliged to be there like how Piper (and Reyna) was there for him.

"Hey man!" Jason greeted Nico di Angelo as he walked inside of the room.

"Jase!" Nico gave him one of his odd smiles and walked straight to Piper who had been lying down on a made-shift bed. "Was Piper by chance holding something when she was knocked over?"

Jason shook his head. "I don't know. After Leo unlocked the bathroom door, the doctors carried her away in a stretcher. I don't think they touched her that much. They were only taking temperatures, feeling her forehead etc."

Nico took a peep of the hospital corridors and unclenched Piper's fist. As Nico mentioned, she was holding something - a piece of paper.

"What's that?" Jason asked curiously.

"Oh nothing." Nico muttered hastily as he took the crumbled piece of paper and put it inside his pocket. Quickly, he clenched Piper's fingers into a fist again. "Look, if anybody asked, I did not touch Piper McLean in any way." he whispered.

"What's with all the secrecy?" Jason pressed on.

Nico hesitated then said "My dad." as if it would explain everything.

* * *

"Dad?" Jason asked as the Grace family sat down for their rare family dinner. The Grace Family is very busy indeed so they hardly spend their meals together. Zeus always eat at odd hours especially due to his busy schedule while their mom Joan is a famous reporter. Joan always had to go to press conferences and didn't get to spend a lot of time with her family.

"Yes, son?" Zeus boomed proudly although there wasn't anything to be proud of.

"Do you know Nico's dad?"

Zeus gave a grim smile to his son. Of course, he knew who Hades Di Angelo was. They were once best friends but they fell apart during the end of high school. Poseidon, their other best friend also fell apart around the same time although Hades and Poseidon remained closer. "Yes." He answered shortly making it clear that he doesn't want to elaborate further.

"Who is he?"

"Nobody you need to know of." Zeus said hastily and used his fork to twirl some of his spaghetti. "Great food, Joan. Could use some salt though."

* * *

Annabeth stood in front of seven white tombstones, lined up neatly in a cemetery and bowed her head in respect. It was almost the third anniversary of the Shooting and Annabeth liked paying her respects before the season comes. When it comes, everybody crowds around the tombstones and to her, it's not really paying respects. Some people even appeared there to socialize.

Most of the victims were her closest friends. Like Silena, Beckendorf, Zoe…okay, maybe not all of them are her closest ones. However, they were connected in some ways. For example, Chris was Clarisse's boyfriend and Clarisse had never dated since he died.

Solemnly, she stepped up the each grave and placed a rose on the stones. The wind blew against Annabeth's cheeks harder as she stepped onto the last grave. The sky seemed to become a darker shade of gray as Annabeth put down her rose. Annabeth shuddered, the whole atmosphere seemed like a horror movie.

Suddenly, spiders crawled out from gravestones a few steps ahead. Annabeth froze in fear. She isn't normally scared of anything but spiders are one of the things in the world she fear most. Just the thought of their fuzzy, eight legs climbing up Annabeth's body wanted to make her scream.

Calm down, she told herself. It's no use screaming in this deserted cemetery. Even if there's people, they'll all think she's gone crazy. The cemetery is one of the most used settings in horror movies and it'll make people think she's hallucinating ghosts, vampires and all kinds of creature. As Annabeth blinked a few times, she realized that the spiders weren't real. It was all her imagination, she was truly hallucinating.

Annabeth felt somewhat ashamed of herself. It's not her being scared in a cemetery. For the past two years, she had been to the exact spot without being frightened. There is just something special about this year that made everything spookier. Did they change anything in the graveyard? No, a definite no. The place haven't changed in years. Nobody bothered to sponsor money to help fix this place.

"Annabeth." A coarse voice whispered hoarsely behind her.

Annabeth jumped shocked. She would be screaming but she couldn't seem to find her voice. Not daring to turn around she forced herself to say without quavering "Who are you?"

"You know me, Annabeth." the voice seemed to be smirking, but rather weakly.

Slowly, she turned her head. Messy blonde hair, piercing but tired blue eyes and a huge scar across his face. Luke Castellan.

"Surprise to see me?" he managed a small smile with his feeble lips. God, Annabeth didn't know how to react. This guy, Luke Castellan had to show up in her life now. Truthfully, she isn't entirely sure if she's glad how Luke disappeared after the Shooting. However, he just seemed so fragile and sickly, Annabeth wanted to help him.

"Yeah." Annabeth admitted carefully. "What do you want from me?"

"Nothing." Luke whispered. "I just can't anymore."

"Can't what?" Annabeth asked. "And where were you all these years? The police had spent days finding you but they couldn't. Everybody thought you were dead, in fact some people even suspected you as the shooter. You can't just appear here - in this city - like this. It's like a ghost coming alive!"

"I guess it would be." Luke nodded. "But I had to."

"Why, Luke. Why?"

Luke's blue eyes gleamed dully. "I might tell you after you get me some food. I can't go into the shops without scaring everybody there so I'm counting on you."

Annabeth grumbled. "Fine." Normally, she would say 'no' if somebody was in Luke's position asking her to help him but this is Luke Castellan. Her long-term crush until she met Percy. To be honest, meeting Luke was kinda of freaky but she still felt her heart pound two times as quick like before.

* * *

"Did you get the paper?" Hades Di Angelo bore his dark melancholic eyes onto Nico as if he had nothing better to do.

"Yeah." Nico handed over the crumbled piece of paper anyone could have thought as scrap. Both father and son knew this was more valuable than diamonds. They are lucky how the police haven't been through Piper's pockets or figure out that Piper is clenching this piece of information in her fist.

"Yes." Hades murmured greedily stroking the rough paper. "This is gold."

"Unfold it!" Nico urged but quickly quieted down as his father gave him an annoyed glare.

"Fine." Hades spat smoothening the creases. When the paper is flattened, they leaned in and read the note silently.

"No." Hades hissed dangerously. "They could not have."

Nico studied his dad's expression. He had never seen him this angry before. Wait, what's that? Hades' lips twisted maliciously and sly. "Dad, they just-"

"Don't say it." Hades' snake-like eyes narrowed towards his son. "She messed with the wrong person and she should be taught a lesson. Bring me my phone."

"Uh..dad? It's in your pocket." Nico reminded him.

"Right. Curse this." Hades rolled his eyes as he took his phone out of his pocket. "You know, your mom had style. This only seems to work with her and 'Bring me my phone' makes me seem wealthier and grander. Like I have slaves bringing me whatever I want."

Nico groaned. "Let's go through this again. I'm your son, not your slave."

"Whatever." Hades flicked his hands making it clear for Nico to go away as he grasped his phone lovingly.

* * *

Percy was walking down the street when a girl with blonde wavy hair and sparkling blue eyes walked up to her. Percy didn't recognize her but she looked somewhat familiar. "Hey, you're Piper's friend, right?" she said in a British Accent.

"Yeah." Percy scratched his head.

"Will you please give her this?" the girl handed over a box. "Say it's from Catriona. She knows me."

"Uh…okay?" He is confused. "But why me? Why don't you give it to Hazel or Jason or somebody else?"

"Well, where is Hazel or Jason?" Catriona questioned almost haughtily.

"I don't know." Percy shrugged. "It's kinda your job to find them if you want this delivered to Piper."

"So why won't you go and deliver this to Piper yourself? You are her friend too."

Trapped. He sighed. "Fine, give me your goddamn package."

"Thank you!" Catriona handed him the light box and gave him a beautiful but creepy smile. Creepy as in like one of those all-knowing smiles you see actresses give when they're pretending to be some fortune tellers or oracles. Giving Percy one last look, she turned and walk away as if she's in a runway.

As Percy walked towards the hospital Piper is kept in, Catriona took out her phone and typed 'Received 3:00pm'

BEEP! Somebody texted her almost right away. "Really? Cat, did you have to put the time as well?"

"Shut up. Just tell your dad that Percy should be heading towards the hospital now." she texted.

"Percy? Smart. Only he would be so gullible." Cat's friend texted back.

Catriona smiled. "Ttyl. Coming back but I'll have to get rid of this first." Without waiting for any texts, she attached a self-destruct bomb to the back of the phone and a timer of 10 seconds. She looked around the empty streets to make sure nobody's watching then tossed her phone carelessly towards a bush.

As Cat sashayed casually down the road, a barely audible phone started beeping. It wasn't the timer, as the timer was soundless. Chelsea Tait had texted.

* * *

**So I decide to give you guys one more chapter before I'm off to camp. You guys probably figured it but I won't be updating until next Saturday/Sunday but I have the chapter already written so it'll be done fast. **

**Anyway, yeah I dare to bring Luke Castellan into the story ;)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	11. Peekaboo

Piper opened her eyes groggily. "Hello?" She called. Wait…this isn't her toilet. THis place has bright shining white lights, a sickly smell and a random girl next to her lying down in a made-shift bed. "Who the hell are you?" Piper demanded.

The girl looked into Piper's kaleidoscope almost sadly. She used her hands and motioned towards her mouth as her jaws moved up and down. No sound came out of her mouth but the girl seemed to be trying to communicate. After giving the girl a sympathetic smile for no reason, Piper looked around the area. A white curtain surrounded her bed and the girl's next to her. This looked like..oh god, she's in a hospital.

"Why am I here?" Piper wondered aloud.

Suddenly, the white curtain was pulled apart and two boys walked in. Piper blinked, right Jason Grace and Percy Jackson. "You're alive!" Jason exclaimed as he reached his phone and she could tell that he's texting somebody.

"Alive?" Piper scoffed. "Of course I am. And your first reaction is to text somebody when you see me awake?"

"Hey Pipes." Percy was holding a brown box. "This girl called Catriona wanted to give this to you." he said handing her the box.

"Cat?" Piper's eyes widened.

"Yeah." Percy looked a bit awkward. "She said you know her. Wait, you do right?"

"I do." Piper nodded. Cat used to be Piper's best friend but that was so primary school. They had a fight during their last year of primary school and none of them talked to each other again. Not recently anyways. She is sure that the tension between them is relieved, she meant they aren't going to fight over..whatever anymore. They just fell apart. Sometimes, Piper is tempted to strike up a casual conversation with her when they walk past each other but she never got round to doing so. Cat has her own friends now and so does she.

"Then take it." Percy threw the box towards Piper. The box landed beside her as she stared blankly into space still thinking wistfully of her times with Cat.

"Piper?" Jason waved his hands in front of Piper's eyes.

"What?" She blinked a bit distractedly.

"Sorry, thought you might have slipped into unconsciousness with your eyes opened or something."

"Idiot." Piper muttered.

Jason gave a cute little smile as if he heard her comment. "Anyway, I texted them. Hazel, Frank, Leo and Reyna are coming. Annabeth said something about having important business to deal with."

Percy moaned. "I hope it doesn't last all day. We are suppose to go on a date tonight."

* * *

"I can't get you a decent place to stay in." Annabeth reported. "Apparently, some International Maths Competition is held here around this time so all the rooms are booked. Do you mind staying in our local rubbish dump? There are plenty of comfortable rubbish to lie on and if you're lucky, you can find some cool gadgets there. Have I mention having rats as your hotel staff once you trained them?"

Luke groaned while taking another sip of his coffee. "Really? Nothing?"

Annabeth sighed. "My house is always an option but my step-mom would freak if he sees you. Don't worry about my dad, he's in some conference in San Francisco and won't be back until next week."

"How about your brothers?"

"I don't know? But they won't be going inside my room, they know what I can do to them." Annabeth grinned. "Just stay in my room the whole time, okay? If you want to get out, use the window and be sneaky in the garden."

"Great." Luke beamed. "I knew you would be a major help."

"So um..when are you out of town?"

"Don't worry, I'm only around for a few days. At the most, a week."

"Perhaps shorten that time?"

"If I can get what I came here for earlier." Luke promised.

* * *

As Piper's finger felt the brown box, the memory of her last fight with Cat appeared in her mind.

"Cat, don't do it!" Piper screamed as gray clouds formed over the two girls. Within seconds, little pellets of raindrops fell from the clouds.

Catriona's electric blue eyes flashed dangerously. "Fuck off! I don't even know why we started talking. This is my life and you can't stop me from doing whatever I want."

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into!" Piper warned desperately. "Why are you even dating a 16 year old player?"

"I know he use to be a player. He won't cheat on me though. I'm practically Goddess, nobody comes close to me in the beauty department." Her eyes rolled haughtily. "And all he cares is if a girl is pretty or not."

"You're 13!" Piper reminded her. "13 year olds don't just date 16 year olds."

"He loves me, okay? Just stop being in the way. Are you jealous or something?"

Piper was taken back. Jealous? No. She is just trying to help her ex-friend. "You know what his repitation is, don't you. What do people call him again? A man-whore?"

"Doesn't mean he's going to force me to have sex with him like what he did to Leila." Cat countered. "Look, I don't want to show up at his place dripping wet. I'm already soaked and I still have to walk a few blocks. Just bye okay?"

Piper felt useless. She tried convincing Cat not to go to his place but she is ever so determined to. She knew what was going to happen but is powerless to stop it. Should she feel guilty? It's not her fault but still. Piper knew she couldn't argue against Cat. All she could do is stand at one side and watch Cat stomp away angrily.

Piper shook the memory away. Catriona had stopped talking to her ever since. She wondered why Cat wanted to give her this brown box. A sign of friendship? A way to say 'how are you doing'? A gesture to make sure she's okay from the attack?

Feeling curious, she untied the white string holding the box together dramatically. The brown wrapping fell apart almost immediately and inside was a piece of paper. Piper was surprised, the box isn't small - it's medium sized. She expected more than just a piece of paper.

Oh well, Piper shrugged. She shouldn't have her hopes high on Cat. Not expecting a lot, Piper flipped the small notepaper.

'Piper,

957-0088 (AN: Not a real phone number. Please don't call this person in real life, it'll trouble them a lot.) Call him.

~Cat'

So Cat sent a phone number to me, Piper thought. How puzzling. However, Piper knew that for Cat, nothing is too weird. She is queen of anything strange happening. Piper didn't know the number, nor does she have a clue to who may own this number. She might as well try calling this person sometime.

* * *

"I know you're there." Hades said dangerously soft.

"Well well, Hades Di Angelo. You already know who I am so what's the point of hiding?"

"Exactly." Hades smirked. "Why don't you come out first?" He was in the storage room of a department store hiding behind cardboard boxes. His opponent is lurking somewhere behind the boxes in the same room.

"I prefer having my enemies in the open while I'm in the dark. I thought you'd know that by now."

"Are you being a coward? Come out." Hades hissed unpleasantly. "You messed with the wrong person. You shouldn't have put the note on Piper McLean. What if the wrong person picked it up? This matter is between you and me, nobody shall interfere."

"Oh, I knew you would have got it somehow." The voice taunted. "And you did so why does it matter?"

Hades frowned. "What if. There are many flaws in your plan, it can go the wrong way. You are only sitting in your office hoping that this would go the way you wanted. We all know there is more than 90% chance it'll turn out not as expected. You're playing a dangerous gamble, you're in a lottery and you can't win this."

"If I don't win your so-call lottery, I can try again. I use to love going to Las Vegas to gamble. You know, I always win. Being in the right place at the right time helps but of course, cheating does the rest. This is a gamble I won't loose."

"Shut up." Hades shouted ferociously. "Go torture whoever you like but you are not touching a bit of my fortune or am I being recruited to your little club. Keep my family, my properties and me out of your damn game."

A light laugh drew closer. Hades' heart beat faster. Never in his life he had to do something crazy like this. He had always played safe but this only offered him the hard way. "Come out, come out Hades. It's almost like we're in kindergarten again. Playing Hide 'N' Seek. I'm always good at those games, brother."

"Father had always favored you." Hades remembered bitterly. "Good thing he died."

"I knew it was your fault." A frightening scream echoed the storage room. "Killing your own father was totally not cool."

"And killing me isn't anything better either. We're from the same mother's womb." Hades snarled.

"I can't stand you anymore. I'm ashamed to be genetically related to you. Peekaboo, your game is about to end." Hades felt hot breath behind him. He knew what was going to happen. Taking his last gulp of air, he waited for something to hit him.

* * *

**Surprised about what's in the box? I hope so and who do you think is Hades related to? Remember, this story isn't Greek Mythology so everybody isn't related. **

**Anyway, I'm back from camp and it was awesome! I'll be updating more often as I'll probably be on my laptop for quite a lot now. **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	12. A-Worthy Project

"How's dad?" Bianca asked politely as Nico groaned. What do they teach kids in British Boarding Schools? Instead of saying 'hi' or any form of greeting him during the beginning of their rare phone calls, Bianca asked about their parents. Their friggin parents. "And how's mom? She wrote a 5 pages email last week to update me about our families' current affairs. Is dad still away?"

"Yeah, they're both fine." Nico grumbled. "And he's still in the middle of nowhere. He didn't tell anybody where he's going. He just said it's a business meeting although he doesn't really have a job."

"Ah. That's what mom wrote too." Bianca's voice drawled from the phone. "Maybe dad finally found a job!"

"Unlikely." Nico said shortly.

"When is dad coming back?" She asked in the same courteous manner that Nico found quite irritating.

"I don't know." He replied.

"Oh." Bianca said quietly.

"Can you stop speaking like how you're speaking now?" Nico complained and imitated a posh British accent. "This is exactly how ridiculous you sound." (AN: I actually love the way how British Accent sounds so don't take this personally! It's just that Nico seemed like the type to start complaining.)

"Ridiculous?" An indigent voice came from the other end but still in the grand manner. "Many people around the world would love to have a British Accent. It sounds cute. Besides, it's almost impossible not developing one after spending so long here."

"Sounds cute?" Nico repeated. "Now that is awkward coming from you."

"Whatever."

"How's…school?" Nico asked trying to continue their conversation. Every phone call shared between the siblings, none of them really knew what to say so it ended up being quite formal.

"Great. You?"

"Fine. Just fine." Nico said grimly.

"I'm coming back for the Christmas holiday." Bianca said offering another conversation topic.

"I know." Nico answered. "You always do."

"Is there anything you want to tell me about?"

"No. Is there anything you want to say to me?"

"Not really." Bianca admitted.

* * *

Reyna walked into Mr. Freyers class nervously. Had he figured out that she was cheating? Did he change her grades back? However, Mr. Freyers didn't seem to look suspicious at all. He just looked at Reyna - and the whole class - how he always does.

As Reyna sat down in her seat, she pulled out what she needed for the lesson gingerly refusing to look at Mr. Freyers.

"Today, we will be continuing our topic about World War 2!" Mr. Freyers announced. Reyna cringed, she was hoping to move on so the teacher won't be checking her grades again. Hopefully, Mr. Freyers won't realize the little boost of her grades.

"First of all, let me remind everybody of their grades on the previous project so they have a target to aim at."

Reyna felt like that was directing to her. Target to aim at. Of course she had one, but she cheated out of it.

"Let's start with the back row!" Mr. Freyers smiled at the students in the back who didn't really care about their grades. "Rubin, you got an E on your last project due to the lack of research. I was tempted to give you an F but you really did improve from the beginning of the year. However, a page of font 48 essay about how you hated Adolf Hitler because a lookalike stole your cheese-sandwich would not be getting you any high grades. I have to say that you did incorporate some facts of Hitler but only very minimal."

Reyna looked at the back as Rubin continued staring into space. At least there are a lot of people to get pass before her.

"Tiffany, you had achieved a rather average grade. Your project had been beautifully put together but you are missing quite a lot of points. So that's something for you to think about when we're doing our next project about World War 2."

As the time goes ticking, Mr. Freyers got closer and closer to Reyna. She felt anxious and jumpy. She had never felt like this before in a classroom. She always had her homework complete, if not on time it's earlier. She always gave her full attention in class. She never had anything to worry about before.

Reyna must have looked pretty sick by the time Mr. Freyers was explaining how to improve to Josh, this guy sitting two rows behind her as Mr. Freyers looked worriedly to her direction. "Reyna, are you feeling alright?"

"Just fine." She gritted her teeth.

"Well, I'll tell you what, you better run down to the nurse." Mr. Freyers gave a sympathetic smile. "But before you do, let me give you a target to aim on in case you're not back when we get to you."

Reyna felt butterflies in her stomach. This isn't what she was hoping for. Couldn't she just go down to the nurse straightaway?

"Reyna."

"Yes?" She looked up weakly as the rest of the class were busy doing their own thing.

"You have done brilliantly." Mr. Freyers nodded. "Except, you could have added…"

Reyna wasn't paying attention either. She didn't know whether to feel overjoyed yet. After all, Mr. Freyers is the sneaky kind of guy who makes you feel all happy and relieved in one second and attacks you in the next. He is probably waiting for her to look content with herself then he'll accuse her of cheating.

"…Your project is truly an A-worthy." Mr. Freyers continued. "Well done! Now you may go down to the nurse."

"Thanks." Reyna stuttered as she ran out of the classroom quickly. Your project is truly an A-worthy. A-worthy my ass, Reyna thought. Somehow, she knew that Mr. Freyers had known about hacking into the school system. She felt guilty but also eased.

Your project is truly an A-worthy. False, Reyna thought angrily. It should have been 'Your project is truly a B-worthy.' Now that's how it should have been. She had never cheated in her life and this did not feel good. Percy Jackson, Annabeth's boyfriend always cheated. How did he not regret his actions? Wait, regret? Reyna almost did.

Reyna didn't know who to feel irritated at. Leo? For hacking into the school system and helping her. Mr. Freyers? For giving her a fucking B before. Her parents? For pressuring her to get an A every time. Hylla? For being such a genuine good role model so her parents always have such high expectations for their other daughter. Or most importantly, herself. For letting her project get a B and allowing the thought of hacking enter her mind.

* * *

Annabeth Chase looked at the sign-up board for activities she can choose to do over the weekend for extra credit. Usually, only people who seriously needed help or points to move on does these activities but Annabeth liked doing them anyway. It does give her extra points (although she already has an outstanding amount) to gain a higher level.

Trip to Thailand for Community Service? Nah…her parents won't agree. A) Too expensive. B) Her brothers need babysitting. C) Waste of time.

Boat ride on the river? Now that is an easy option for lazy people. Apparently, teachers believe they can teach students about rivers or whatever. Nobody is going to pay attention. Annabeth rolled her eyes as she saw the huge list of names scrawled on the list trying to get in.

Visit to the library? Done that last year, she thought. It was pretty fun when the teacher allowed free time but most of it was useless as Annabeth already know 90% of the things you need to know about the library.

Museums. Perfect. Annabeth saw the empty piece of sign up paper and wrote her name neatly on the top. She never understood why people dreaded museums. Annabeth loved them, especially when it's the History one. She often get absorbed into the endless exhibits of museums whenever she's in one.

"Annie, going to those absolutely delightful museums again?" A mocking voice trilled behind her.

"Stop calling me that." Annabeth growled. "And if you find them so delightful, why don't you sign up as well? I see that you actually need the points, Drew."

"I would love to but the boat ride sounds rather more glamorous, doesn't it?" Drew's perfect lips drew into a smile, one that is obviously forced on.

"Then have fun on your boat ride." Annabeth returned the same fake smile. "I hope the alligator gets you."

* * *

"When are you leaving? You said you'll only stay for 2-3 days but guess what? I don't think a week is a few days."

Leo Valdez froze. This voice is familiar…it's Annabeth. As curious as he always is, he walked stealthily towards Annabeth.

"I'm sorry, okay? Sorry! I'll only be around for a few more days. I promise!"

"Promise?" Annabeth raised her voice indigently. "Your last promise didn't turn out well."

"That was different." The person Annabeth spoke to replied coldly. Leo peeked and saw a tall guy with blonde hair and a huge scar across his face. Leo didn't recognize him but he felt like he should know who this unfamiliar boy is. It's almost like he had seen him before. Maybe he did, but that didn't exactly recall in his mind.

"And how is this not the same?" Annabeth demanded.

"Calm down, Annie."

Leo narrowed his eyes and hid behind a tree. Annabeth never let anybody call her 'annie', except for Percy and that was only occasionally. Somehow, when this guy said it, she only flinched but didn't correct him like she would normally do. Who is this guy?

"Leo?" Leo looked up and saw Annabeth and the boy staring at him.

"Um hi!" He tried to make himself look innocent as if he wasn't eavesdropping.

"What were you doing?" The boy raised his eyebrow almost expectantly.

"I was walking to Jason's place and absently-mindely walked into this tree. You know, with all that gears and tools in my mind." Leo gave them a blast of his award-winning smile as he patted the tree.

"Okay." The boy still seemed pretty unconvinced.

"Do you recognize him?" Annabeth asked hastily.

Leo studied her expression. She seemed anxious about this encounter and was more than keen to know the answer. "No. I mean, I feel like I should know who he is but really, I don't." He answered truthfully.

"So you don't know who I am?" The boy questioned.

"Yup."

"Well, this is my cousin Luke." Annabeth explained. "He arrived a week ago saying that he would only stay for a few days."

"Man, why didn't you tell us that your cousin is here?" Leo complained. "We could have hosted him some welcome parties or whatever."

Luke looked at Leo as if saying 'seriously?' and added briskly. "I'm not suppose to be here, So keep this a secret, okay?"

"Uh..sure man. Does Perce know?"

"Perce? As in Percy Jackson?" Luke turned his attention to Annabeth who turned as red as a tomato.

"No, he doesn't. Just don't tell him."

"Well, you can keep your secret with me!" Leo said cheerfully. "My mouth is zipped. See?" He used his fingers and made the gesture to zip his mouth.

Luke stared at him as if he's a little kid who just interrupted a grave funeral for a while but eventually grinned. "Okay."

* * *

**Yay! New chappie! :) So Leo meets Luke Castellan but doesn't remember who he is...and Reyna got really lucky, or did she? **

**Next chapter would be a relatively long one so expect more surprises! ;)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	13. Starstruck

So this is how I spend time with my girlfriend, Percy thought as he looked across the display of Egyptian pottery. Due to Annabeth's project which she didn't tell him much about, they hardly spend time together anymore.

It's not that Percy is complaining that he finally got a day to themselves (plus a few other nerdy kids and a teacher), it's just he wanted much more than this. He was expecting something less educational and more private. He couldn't even talk to her without Mrs. Davis standing behind them waiting for him to say something like 'I never knew this before.' or 'Oh my God! Can you believe how interesting this is?'

What made it worse was the fact that Andrew, this kid kept on asking him questions about his relationship with Annabeth.

"Hey Percy! How on earth did you manage to get a girlfriend? Like every time I go close to a girl, they just disappear the next moment."

Percy groaned, here he comes again. He doesn't exactly blame the girls for leaving when Andrew arrive as he is the type of person that talks over-excessively and it does get into people's nerve. Having greasy hair and a dirty appearance didn't help either.

"And once you get one, how do you maintain a long relationship? Somebody told me that girls are like glass. They have to be handled with care and…"

Percy looked over rather helplessly at Annabeth and gave her a 'save me now' look. He wasn't sure if she was too absorbed with whatever that's behind him or was really paying attention to his pleas. Either way, she looked pretty frantic and walked quickly over obeying the museums' no running rules.

"Percy!" Annabeth whispered loudly as a security guard nearby gave her a glare and pointed to a 'be quiet' sign. She mouthed sorry to the security guard and said in a softer manner "You've got to look at this."

"What?" Andrew piped up beside her. "And you should have seen how Lili looked at me the other day. I mean, nobody ever looked at me like that. I think she has a little crush on me, but again, does she? Actually, I think she had a crush on Bruce."

Ignoring him, Annabeth pushed her phone towards Percy's face. Percy looked at the screen and found a Facebook page staring back at him.

**Katie Gardner - Travis Stroll**

I'm. Going. To. Get. You.

Watch out Stroll

**Frank Zhang updated his cover photo**

_Comments:_

Leo Valdez: You do have a weird obsession with elephants

Hazel Levesque: That's not bad. I like elephants.

"What?" Percy raised his eyebrows. "This is pretty normal and seriously? Why did Frank get another elephant as his cover picture?"

Annabeth took her phone and scrolled down. "Here. Below the picture."

**Jason Grace was tagged in Thalia Grace's pictures**

Another update on Jason sleeping! He does have a funny position when he sleeps.

_Comments:_

Jason Grace: Thals!

Thalia Grace: Sorry, this is just hilarious.

Leo Valdez: Did he snore?

See more

"Did you see it yet?" Annabeth hissed impatiently.

"What? Oh yeah, Jason's head is like turning upwards-"

"Not that! I said below the picture!"

"Wait!" Percy grabbed the phone. "I want to see the rest of the comments."

"Just look down."

Feeling compelled to, he looked down and saw

**Juniper**

Guys, watch the news now. Did anybody see what happened to Drew? Oh my God, I'm so glad I didn't sign up for boat rides.

"What happened?" Percy asked half-heartedly still concentrating on the picture of Jason sleeping.

"I checked the news and apparently Drew was found dead on the boat." Annabeth's stormy gray eyes flashed.

"Dead?" He frowned. "How about the other people on the boat?"

"In shock. They're still not talking."

Percy was taken back. He didn't particularly liked Drew or her friends, but they were schoolmates. They knew each other and since the Shooting, he didn't expect any deaths to come across his schoolmates again. He thought the whole killing students thing was done. This could just have been an accident, it probably is just an accident but somebody is dead.

"Um..hello?" Andrew asked quietly as the atmosphere was silenced with shock. "Are you still listening to me?"

* * *

"Hi." Reyna nodded towards Piper. "So you're out of the hospital."

"Yeah." Piper shuffled her feet nervously. Conversations with Reyna had been short and awkward ever since Jason woke up from coma. They both knew that they would try to win Jason's heart but as the same time, they knew that they were friends. They can't go over-the-top over a guy, especially when they were becoming quite close. Nobody wanted to ruin their blooming friendship but at the moment, it's not going as well as it was.

"They found the person who knocked you out yet?"

"No. Not yet." Piper shrugged. "Hey, do you know anybody who has 957-0088 as their phone number?"

"Why'd you ask?" Reyna asked quizzically.

"Oh nothing. But do you?"

"Actually yes," Reyna paused. "Not exactly but it does sound familiar. If I figure out who it is, I'll tell you" she offered.

"Thanks, Rey." Piper smiled.

"So is Jason like your boyfriend now?" Reyna asked painfully. She didn't really want to hear the answer, but she is dying to know. It's the feeling where you don't know

whether you want to know something or not. Half of her did while half of her rather stay ignorant of the situation.

"What! No!" Piper exclaimed somewhat defensively. "No! I mean, we're not together or anything."

"Really?" Reyna asked suspiciously. "You do act like one."

"No." Piper reassured her, hinting sadness. "Nothing but friends at the moment."

* * *

Leo punched Jason's arm as a greeting. "Hey, are you going to the funeral?"

"Ow!" Jason rubbed his arm lightly. "What funeral?"

"The Shooting." Leo said. "The one you got into coma for."

"Oh right, that." Jason's eyes flickered uncertainly. "I don't know if I'm going. It might be a bit too sensitive and over-whelming for me. I am one of the victims."

"Piper will be there." Leo grinned cheekily. "Reyna too."

"And?"

"Just thought you might want to go there. You know…seriously, can you just tell me which one them do you like?" Leo's dark eyes bounced around the school corridors. "Nobody's around. I'll keep it a secret, I'm great at it. Just ask Annabeth..actually don't. I don't think I'll be exactly keeping the secret if you knew that I'm keeping one for her."

Jason rolled his eyes. Although his memory haven't come back so he didn't remember having Leo as a friend before, he is getting use to Leo. He understood how he became best friends with this Latino Santa's Elf. Leo is likable and fun. "You're going?"

"Practically the whole school would be there, so I guess so. It's almost like a party. Last year, some guys got champagne and blasted loud music."

"What?" Jason's eyes shot open quite appalled. "A party? Loud music? What do they want to do, wake up the dead? Well, it would be great bringing them back alive but I don't think it works. That is totally disrespectful. Do they know how close I came to dying in that shooting and being under one of those graves? What if I'm a ghost and mourning for my own death? I would be, I can't even express how annoyed at the people above me."

Leo patted Jason's back. "Calm down bro, I'm sure it'll be fun. I mean last year was awesome." As he realized his poorly chosen words, Leo quickly added. "As in we all bought fresh flowers and put them respectfully on the graves after sending a round of prayers."

"Fine. I'll go."

"Good." Leo beamed. "Well, it's this Saturday."

"I know." Jason nodded. "Wait, isn't Drew Tanaka's funeral on the same day?"

"I think so." Leo answered. "Somebody said something about burying her along the line of graves. After all, she did die in a school-related activity."

* * *

"This dress isn't proper enough." Mrs. Jennings scolded her daughter. "It's almost like you're going to a party."

"How is it- never mind. Fine, I'll change." Reyna muttered. She knew it was useless arguing against her mother. After changing for the hundredth time, she came out of her bathroom again. "Is this okay?"

"Best one I've seen yet." Her mother looked as if she approved the dress but Reyna learnt never to trust her mother's expressions as they're often misleading. "But is this the best you can come up with?"

"Mother, I'm running out of black clothing." Reyna reminded her. "I don't have five truck-loads of formal black clothing for you to criticize about."

Mrs. Jennings held her hands high as if she's surrendered a fight. "Hey, I'm just giving you advice for the perfect funeral clothing. I don't want people to think that we're a family of improper-ness and of that clothing." She pointed distastefully at the pile of unwanted black clothing. "You do realize who would be there. There's people like Piper McLean - the daughter of Tristan McLean and Hollywood socialite Aphrodite, Hazel Levesque - the heir to her family's jewel, Jason Grace - the son of Judge Zeus Grace and more. These are all celebrities or people with high social status. We can't look like tramps in front of them. Have I mentioned Aphrodite is also a super-model and fashion designer? She is my own classmate, for Heaven's sake. It would be so embarrassing showing up with you like that in the funeral in front of her. And did you hear that she is going to the cemetery today? It's almost like my only chance to meet her other than school conferences in school when they invite parents."

Reyna sighed. She had heard endless times about her mom and Aphrodite. Apparently, Aphrodite was like the It-Girl of their year and her mom, just like everybody else, tries to fit in and wants Aphrodite to like her. The whole school thing ended ages ago but her mom still wants to give Aphrodite a good impression especially when her popularity has grown global.

"Is this what you want?" Reyna picked up two pieces of clothing whom she didn't particularly like but knew that Mrs. Jennings would love.

"Reyna! That fits you so well! It's perfect!" Her mom cried, temporally forgetting about impressing Aphrodite McLean.

"I'll wear it." Reyna groaned but forced a smile upon her face implying to her mom that she loved the outfit as well.

* * *

"Wise Girl!" Percy called as he pulled up car next to the front door of Annabeth's house. Annabeth grinned as she saw her boyfriend and got into the car next to him. "You look beautiful." he smiled as she blushed.

"Thanks." Annabeth murmured.

"I thought you aren't going to the graveyard." Percy said. "You always go before the actual thing."

"Well, Drew's funeral is today. I thought I might as well go to pay respect to Silena, Beckendorf and all of them since they're around the same venue."

"You didn't like Drew?"

"You're such a Seaweed Brain." Annabeth frowned. "Just because I don't like a person doesn't mean I don't visit her funeral. Drew's dead!"

Percy still didn't get why Annabeth would want to visit the funeral of somebody she didn't like but decided not to question her further. Knowing her, she could incorporate complicated scientific formulas or math into this even if it's irrelevant. Percy knew it didn't worth the risk listening to his girlfriend explaining the whole way to the cemetery.

"Are your parents coming?" Percy asked instead.

"No." Annabeth shook her head. "Why would they?"

"Piper's parents are going this year since her dad came back from greece to see if she's alright after being knocked out. I think there would be a lot more people than usual. They probably all want to meet Aphrodite and Tristan."

"Don't they come every year? Why would this year be extra crowded?"

Percy thought for a while. "No? They didn't come last year since Aphrodite was in this fashion runway and Tristan was on a talk show. Remember?"

"Right." Annabeth blinked as she remember Piper telling them that her parents would be gone for that week.

"We're almost there." Percy glanced at a roadside announcing that they'll be there in 3 minutes.

Annabeth sighed. "I can already hear the music and the cheering. When would people realize that it's a sad occasion? Even if Piper's parents are going this time or not, I bet everybody would still be like wild monkeys there."

* * *

"Piper Darling, would there be a red carpet for me and your dad to walk on when we arrive?" Aphrodite inquired.

Piper frowned. This is so typical of her mom. Aphrodite believes that she is such an international superstar that there would be millions of fans waiting for her everywhere she goes. She is always expecting cameras, red carpets, basically star treatment. "No mom. This is a funeral, not the Emmys award or any of your huge celebrity get-togethers. It certainly isn't a party."

"Then why do I hear loud music?" Aphrodite insisted.

Piper gave her mom a grim smile. It's probably true that people are lurking around the graveyard waiting for her parents to appear but she wasn't sure if it'll meet her mom's expectation. Piper knew it wasn't a good idea letting her parents come to the funeral but showing respect is something good. The publicists of her parents believed it was a good idea to visit the graves of the people who died in the Shooting and Drew Tanaka's funeral as it shows the public how caring they are to innocent people. "Mom, just never mind."

"What, hun?" Aphrodite gave her daughter a look. "I really hate it when people say never mind. I want to know everything! Pipes, you know I'm a cool mom. You can tell me everything."

Piper rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine. It's a funeral, mom. Why would we be celebrating that a person died? And I highly doubt that they'll set out a roll of red carpet just because a few celebrities are going there to supposedly pay respect although I'm not sure if you're really going there to do so or not."

"Of course I am!" Aphrodite shook her head defensively. "Anyway, is that boy you have a crush on going?"

"Who?"

"What's his name? Ah, yes. Jason, isn't it?" Aphrodite winked at her.

"What! No! I don't like him!" Piper screeched loudly.

"Pshh…bullshit." Her mom waved her hands carelessly. "Of course you love him. I can totally see the way your eyes look at him. You guys are so cute together."

"Aph, I don't think she wants you to intrude into her love life." Tristan McLean called from the driver's seat as his wife pouted. "On the bright side, we're there!"

Piper recognized the cemetery she had been visiting yearly around the same time. Like last year, the seven white tombstones were the main attraction of the whole graveyard. Flowers were placed next to it, food were next to it supposedly for the dead and there was a crowd around the stones muttering prayers. Some of the 'cool' high school drop-outs were blaring music out of speakers towards the side earning disapproval glances from some elderly women who have been crowding around Mrs. White's stone. Other kids who look around the age of 4 obviously didn't understood the situation as they kept stealing food off the ground when people aren't noticing them. It was still rather early in the morning, so it is relatively quiet. Later in the Afternoon, Piper could bet anything that it'll be such a racket, police would be involved.

"You're right, Pipes. I don't see any carpets." Her mom whispered in her ears.

Piper turned around and raised her eyebrows. "Glad you realized."

"Oh my God! Is that Tristan McLean and Aphrodite?" A teenaged girl next to Silena's tombstone squealed while dropping all her flowers on the grave. As swift as a cheetah, she ran over to the sleek sports car before they even got out of the car.

"I love Tristan although he's married and 20 years older than me!" Another girl screamed rushing over.

"Marry me, Aphrodite!" A 17 year old guy yelled in the midst of the chaos of meeting the celebrities.

"Can you sign my arm?"

"Sign my ass. You know you want to see it!"

"I spend all night voting nonstop for you for the Teens Choice Award!"

"Give me your phone number!"

Piper groaned as a cloud of people covered her sight of the cemetery. All she could see was people, people and more people. Everybody wanted a hug from Aphrodite Grace. Everybody wanted a signature from Tristan McLean. Everybody wants to touch the car of the McLean's. Everybody wanted to steal a possession of the McLean family. Everybody wants to trample over Piper to get to her parents.

"Is it true that you are getting a divorce?"

"When is your new movie going to be out?"

"Can I be your housemaid?"

The questions, Piper swore gets more ridiculous every minute. She is used to the crazy fans who would love kidnap either of her parents. She knew shouting or yelling for the crowd won't calm them down but she couldn't think of any other ways to stop them from being completely wild in a graveyard.

"Guys, stop!" Piper cried in the middle of the crowd but as expected, either nobody heard her or they didn't care.

"Tristan, where is our bodyguard?" Aphrodite hissed. She often enjoyed the attention but they were always orderly. This is just like a zoo, Aphrodite felt like she is an animal kept in the cage while everybody else were excited little kids seeing the animal for the first time.

"You let him off, didn't you? You insisted that he needed a vacation." Tristan reminded his wife. "You said 'Go to the beach, you seriously need a tan.' Remember how you overheard him complaining to his friend about not getting any girl's attention and decided to give him tips for a completely new attractive look?"

"Oh, right." Aphrodite rolled her eyes. "He really needed that. I bet he never had a girlfriend."

Piper closed her eyes. That way, she could only hear the frantic screams but couldn't really see things going on. In a way, it's a lot more peaceful, almost like listening to an album. From the far distance, she heard somebody who sounded strangely like Leo shrieking about ice creams but it couldn't be. Leo said he wasn't going until 3 as he had some mechanic work to do beforehand. Inhaling and exhaling just as her old yoga teacher taught her, she found her situation to be less stressful and crazy.

* * *

"Wow. That is fucking crowded." Jason groaned as he honk his horn. The little road to the cemetery is packed full of people, Jason could not drive through without bumping into the intoxicated crowd. Nobody let the car pass as they all blocked the road.

"What is there?" Leo frowned. "not even last year were there so many people."

"I don't know. Free money?"

"Oi people!" Leo stood up from the car seat and waving his arms wildly. "Get out of the way! We're trying to pay respect to dead people and go to some funeral here!"

"Shut up! You're not even cute." A girl call out from the back to which Leo glared at.** (AN: Not true! I love Leo, he's so damn funny and cute.)**

"Drew's funeral doesn't even start until three o clock." A boy threw some flowers which he was holding towards the car but fell on top of some random women's head.

"Ew! Who are you? Get lost, it's not like Tristan or Aphrodite would want to see you anyways."

"Oh. So I'm guessing Piper arrived." Leo shrugged looking down at Jason. He was obviously saying 'Look! Your girlfriend is here, why don't you get off the car and make out with her.' but didn't say it in front of the crowd.

Jason met Leo's gaze and narrowed his eyes. "not my girlfriend."

"Ooh! I know how to grab their attention." Leo smirked and took out his megaphone which he for some reason always keep in Jason's car. Jason had never bothered to take it out either so it stayed there for more than three years now. He didn't even look at his best friend for approval and shouted. "Free ice cream! Right around the corner!"

Half of the crowd ignored Leo while the rest looked up quite annoyed at him. Leo gave them what he thought was a brilliant smile and pointed to the exit. "It's right over there, guys!"

"You again? And a megaphone? Man, this sucks." A girl complained. "I came here to meet celebrities, not to listen to you."

"What type of ice-creams?" Somebody asked greedily.

"I don't even like ice creams!" A little boy wailed somewhere, but Leo couldn't spot him.

"You seriously think they'll fall for that?" Jason hissed. "Give me that thing."

Leo handed the megaphone over as Jason stood up. "We know the McLean family personally. Make way!"" Jason cried loudly.

The mob of people in front of Jason's car grumbled and moved away reluctantly. They didn't want to let go of their chance on meeting somebody famous but they didn't want to displease them either. If they kept blocking Jason and Leo who knew them in person, who knows what Aphrodite and Tristan can do. Leave? Refuse to meet the crowd? The people didn't want to risk any options.

"Beauty Queen!" Leo grinned as Jason pulled up his car next to the stylish vehicle.

Aphrodite frowned. "Those were the most insane fans ever."

"That's because there isn't any bodyguards or obstacles between you and the actual audience, mom." Piper explained.

Jason gazed at her allowing his eyes to linger for a while. It's good to see Piper alright again after she's been knocked out. Last time they met, they were still in the hospital and she was cranky about the food there.

"I see the way you look at her." Leo whispered.

"And I see the wrong direction your mind is heading to." Jason shot back.

Aphrodite's eyes wandered at the three teenagers and her perfect cupid lips formed into a magazine cover worthy smile. It wasn't hard reading their body language, after all she was partly famous for being able to sniff out love everywhere. Her twinkling eyes found their way to her husband whom she gave beamed at.

"What?" Tristan asked as the teenagers went on with their conversation, something about Nico Di Angelo coming tomorrow instead as he was busy. "Why are you looking at me like that."

"Love." Aphrodite replied dreamily.

"Excuse me?" Tristan raised his eyebrows as somebody in the suspiciously silent crowd gasped and let out a shrill scream.

The crowd was originally in panic-mode of meeting Aphrodite and Tristan, they were desperate to catch a glimpse of them live. Now, this is even worse. It is panic-mode turned on a billion times. Some people were screaming, some people were running rapidly out of the area and you get the point. It was war-zone there. Neither of Jason, Leo, Piper, Aphrodite or Tristan could see what was going on but they could make out that it is something bad. Some people were just standing there, shocked.

Bursting with curiosity, Leo got out of the car and followed the mad crowd. Jason and Piper followed closely behind him as the adults stayed inside their car. Pushing his way through the frozen bodies, Leo found himself right in front of the white tombstones. Lying neatly on the tombstones were not only flowers, money and gifts. A pale, dead body lied across the gravestones, splattered with blood, staining the white graves.

"Nico's dad." Piper breathed beside him.

"Oh my God. Somebody call him." Jason looked as if he was going to puke but managed to grab his phone out.

"Is he really..dead?" Leo asked and realized how stupid the question sounded once he said it out loud.

"No, Leo. He's still alive and breathing." Piper replied sarcastically.

As the trio stared in shock at Mr. Di Angelo's corpse, the people around them started to disperse. None of them wanted to stay in this creepy place. One second, the gravestones were perfectly normal, next a corpse is on there. Nobody saw who put it there or anything. Whoever that put the dead body there must have done it when everybody was overwhelmed by the celebrities. He or she knew that everybody would be distracted and planned it out picture-perfect.

Nobody in the crowd was particularly close to Nico so it's only rightful for them to feel awkward. The trio didn't blame them for leaving so subtlety. While everybody was finding their own way, a young man ran forward from the crowd. "No! This could not happen!" He cried.

"Luke?" Leo looked up and recognized the man. Suddenly, he remembered who Luke is. The missing victim of the Shooting. Supposedly dead. The possible Shooter. He had been called many names. "Luke Castellan." He murmured.

Jason studied his best friend's face. "You know this guy, don't you?" He would have known Luke castellan if his memory had came back, but it still haven't.

"Luke." Piper murmured as if she's still trying to figure out the connection.

"Where's Annabeth?" Luke questioned Leo almost desperately.

"I don't know." Leo looked around. "There she is." He pointed towards Percy's car coming towards the almost deserted cemetery. Even Piper's parents had driven away.

As percy and Annabeth got off the car, Annabeth seemed to have seen Luke already. She came flying from the road with an angry look on her face. "Luke, what are you doing here? And oh my god." Her eyes seemed to have caught sight of the corpse.

"Annabeth, I got to go." Luke stuttered.

"Wait! Do you know anything about this?" She demanded as Percy caught up. Leo saw something on Percy's face he had never seen before. Envy? Hatred? Or just a funny expression you give somebody who is suppose to be dead?

"Luke." Percy growled.

"I'm not in the mood for this, Jackson." He said hurriedly and turned his attention back to Annabeth. "I-I do."

"Call the cops! Somebody!" An elderly man called out trembling from the back. He is just about to leave the cemetery still frightened of the dead corpse but now Luke Castellan appearing is just seemed too much for him. "Luke Castellan!" He stuttered and fell on the pavement.

After hearing the old man, everybody who is still around turned and saw the 'dead' victim glued to the grass staring back at them.

"Don't move. Hold up your arms slowly. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you by the state." A police yelled making his way to the front.

"Got to go." Luke nodded. As unexpected as it may be, tears welled up in his baby blue eyes. "Bye, Annie." Ignoring the police's commands, he started running towards the forest beside the cemetery. The police was around 40 years old with a rather big belly, he had no chance running faster than a young man who streaked like the lightning.

"Stop! In the name of America, you must stop running." The police called panting but Luke refused to obey him. As Luke ran beyond several meters into the forest, the police decided to give up. Instead of eyeing inside the forest, his eyes fell upon the five teenagers. "You are coming with me to the police office."

* * *

**Think this is my longest chapter ever. Judging by the word count, this may actually be around twice the size of a normal chapter! Don't worry, not every chapter would be this long. I only wrote this long chappie as I thought it be necessary to put these scenes together. **

**So this confirms Hades to be dead, ironically going back to his own kingdom if this is Greek Mythology. I'm pretty sure he'll stay dead unless you want a zombified Hades to come along.**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	14. Hey there, bitches

Beep! Reyna checked her phone in the back of her mom's car.

"Mom, the funeral has been called off. It got postponed to next week." She informed her mom who has been driving the car towards the cemetery.

Mrs. Jennings sighed. "Last minute much? I'm almost there, now I have to drive back?"

"Yeah." Reyna bit her lips. "Nico's dad's dead body has been found in the cemetery so now the cemetery has been closed only for police officers and security staffs."

"What?" Reyna's mom pulled her car to a stop. "Hades Di Angelo…died?" Reyna nodded slowly. "No..way." Her mom's eyes flashed.

"He was your classmate, wasn't he?" Reyna remembered looking through her mom's class photos and the dark, mysterious boy in the back.

"Yeah, my classmate." Mrs. Jennings seemed to be distracted and a little spaced out. Reyna allowed her mom to have her own moment. It's not everyday where one of your classmates die.

Beep! Jason had texted. Reyna felt the butterflies in her stomach as she open the message and read the words silently. "Mom, can I go to the police station instead?" She asked softly.

"Why would you do so?" Her mom seemed to have recovered from her moment.

"Oh, nothing." Reyna muttered. She couldn't just tell her mom that her friends are being questioned by the police. Her mom would say that they're a bad influence and cut off all connections with them - including Jason.

"Walk there yourself. I got to go somewhere." Her mom replied waiting for Reyna to get out of the car.

"See you home." Reyna opened the car door and turned her way towards the station.

* * *

Nico Di Angelo sobbed. It had been a while since tears had flowed so freely off his eyes. His sister, Bianca was next to him. She had came back from England on their family's private jet to mourn for their father. Her red eyes were puffed up but she didn't seem to be crying anymore. Normally, his sister would have teased him for crying but this isn't the right situation to do so. Bianca knew how close her brother had been with their dad, it would be plain wrong and rude to do so. Instead, she patted gently on her brother's back. "It'll be alright." She murmured softly.

High heels hit the floor telling the siblings that their mother is home. All dressed in gothic black, she hugged her kids fondly. "The police wants to speak to you." She told them. "Get dressed and only tell them what they need to know about your father. Don't tell them too much."

"Alright." Nico took another tissue from the box and wiped his eyes with it. Breathing in deeply, he told himself mentally to stop crying. It's embarrassing, he told himself.

"Mum, do I have to go as well?" Bianca asked in her perfect British tone.

"Yes." Maria Di Angelo sighed. "Those police are fucking pissing me off. Go on, they're just in the living room."

Normally, Bianca Di Angelo would stiffen up when she hear people using coarse language but again, this wasn't the correct situation to pester people about bad language so she refrained herself from correcting her mother. Bianca wondered what would Chloé, her best friend from boarding school do if she came to New York with her. Everybody swears in New York.

Pulling her silver t-shirt straight, she and her brother made way to the living room and was greeted by two police officers. A woman with a name tag stating that her name is Leah, and a man with a similar name tag telling everyone that his name is Peter.

"Hello Nico." Leah smiled at her little brother. Bianca could immediately tell that they have met each other before. Probably when he was involved in their dad's schemes. "And you must be Bianca." Leah nodded towards her.

Bianca returned an elegant smile - one that would give another the impression that she is a well-mannered child. "Yes."

Nico looked tiredly at Leah. "She's the good kid of the family. You want anything answered, ask her. Now can I go back to my room?"

"Not yet, Nico." Peter answered. "We must have you here just in case."

"Fine." Nico scoffed and slumped on the expensive sofa. "But I'm not talking."

"So Bianca, do you know what exactly happened to your father?" Leah took out her notepad and asked.

Bianca gazed at the police. "No, I'm not sure." For some reason, Cornwall Boarding School for Ladies' rules of becoming a proper lady **(AN: Confusing..isn't it?)** popped into her mind. Number 57 rule of being a lady, you must answer every question that have been asked. Bianca was compelled to answer every questions but as Number 3 rule of being a lady clearly stated respect your parents and do what they ask of you, she was only going to answer to what she has to. She's not going to elaborate on any questions. Why would she think of those rules? She doesn't normally think of them at school or whenever she is suppose to. Maybe it's the police making her nervous. Or maybe she just wants to show Nico how well behaved she is, she never got the chance to show her little brother many things. They don't spend time together.

"I see." Leah nodded jotting down some notes. "You know you don't have to be so prim and proper. Slouch, eat some chocolates, feel comfortable as we question you."

"Don't mind her," Nico grunted from the side. "She's always like that and these chocolates are disgusting. They only cost 50 dollars per box which means that they obviously have been made of poor quality. Don't be so cheap, woman."

Bianca looked quite dismay at her brother. What kind of manners is this? You don't talk to the police like that! Gently, she nudged her brother shooting him a warning glare.

Leah looked uncomfortable in the presence of Nico and Peter seemed to have notice that. Swiftly, he picked up where his partner had left off and said. "Nico, we know you have lost your father but try not to be too rude, okay? We understand your loss and you're probably feeling miserable inside. Just bear with us for a few minutes and we'll let you go."

"Just get this thing over with already." Nico grumbled.

"So, what do you want to ask?" Bianca asked trying to relieve the tension.

"Did he tell you where he was going?" Peter inquired.

"No. Well, sort of. He never really tells us where he goes so we always assume it's something to do with his business."

"And the family is aware of what his business is, am I correct?"

"Are your family aware that you're a policeman, Andrew?" Nico questioned rather tartly. "or do they think you're a male stripper? You certainly don't have the body for that though."

Ignoring Nico, Bianca nodded.

Leah forced a bright smile on her face. "Ah Nico, I do see the resemblance between you and your father. Your personalities are...so alike."

"Except, I probably won't end up being dead like him anytime."

"Ignore my brother." Bianca said hastily. "He's just stressed about our father dying and all that. You know, he is really close to him."

* * *

"Did anyone notice that we're already here for a freaking hour?" Leo groaned as he checked his watch for the countless time.

"Are you serious?" Percy complained. "It feels like five hours."

"What do they expect us to do? Sit here and wait until they have time to interrogate us?" Annabeth muttered. "We don't exactly have a lifetime to waste."

"So who is this Luke Castellan guy?" Jason questioned over and over again.

"The less you know, the better." Annabeth answered again. Always, that same answer. It's driving Jason nuts. He has to have the right to know about a person who is keeping him inside a stuffy office for this amount of time. Without Luke, he won't be spending his Saturday like this.

Piper offered Jason a sympathetic smile. "I don't think you'll want to know who he is anyways."

"Does your folks know you're here?" Leo drummed his fingers impatiently on the table.

"Yeah." Everybody sighed. They haven't done anything wrong and here they are, in the police office. All they have been is at the wrong place during the wrong time. And okay, chatted to a guy who is supposedly dead and might be the Shooter of the Goode High Shootings. Really, if that's the reason, only Annabeth should be here. And maybe Leo, but not everybody else.

After what seemed like another hour, finally an inspector walked in. "Hello." He said arrogantly. "So I understood you were on the scene where Luke Castellan had been spotted and talked to him. This meant that you knew he was still alive, why didn't you alert the police?"

Everybody turned the attention to Annabeth who blushed. "I didn't know he's still alive until today." She lied kicking Leo under the table.

"Yeah, we never seen him before today. We're just so shock to see him." Leo added quickly. "We had to talk to him and find out about him but..he just ran away."

"And why am I suppose to believe you?" The inspector narrowed his eyes.

"Why are you so suspicious?" Percy retorted. "Just believe us."

"Okay. So what did you talk about? Did you ask him where he was all those years?"

"We didn't talk much." Annabeth paused. "I didn't know where he was."

"Is that true?" The inspector met everybody's eyes in the room and looked at them intensively.

"Yes." Piper nodded backing up her friend.

"Do you have any ideas where he's going?"

"No." Leo shook his head.

The inspector warned. "You kids better not be lying. You can go to jail for doing so."

"I'm not fibbing." Annabeth said boldly.

"You may go." The inspector sighed. "If you have any more information on this situation, make sure you inform us."

* * *

Jason returned to Brad Marshall's office for another checkup. He wasn't so sure whether to trust his doctor or not after his little research and finding out some fishy information about him.

"Hello, Mr. Grace." Dr. Marshall greeted him again. "How are you today?"

"Fine." Jason nodded, he couldn't help noticing Dr. Marshall's certificate framed high on the wall boasting to anybody coming inside of him obtaining high degrees in Harvard Medical School. Maybe it's because of his investigation, Jason found himself more observant of the room.

Dr. Marshall shuffled a few documents on his busy table and looked up. "Shall we do a small check-up today to make sure everything is fine?"

"Go ahead." Jason paused. "Before that, may I ask you a question?"

"Shoot away."

Jason picked his question carefully, one that would not make his doctor suspicious in any ways but also give him a good answer. "Do you know who Hannah Pennington is? My friend has a crush on her and I want to find out who she is so I can tease him about it."

"Hannah?" Dr. Marshall seemed to be taken by surprise. "She's 13 now, younger than you. Your friend must be around the same age as you, 16?"

"Well, he's actually a cousin." Jason quickly added. "But I'd like to think him as a friend. You know, when you're really close with your cousin you call him a friend? Yeah? Well, that's teenagers do now. Hehe, you see?" Jason realized he was rambling nonsense and gave his doctor an awkward grin.

"Ah, I see. Yes, I do know Hannah."

"Do you have her phone number, email, Skype or something? I would love to meet her." Jason forced a keen, innocent smile. "More like my cousin would."

The doctor hesitated. "I guess there's no harm giving it to you. You won't use it to do any illegal actions or harm her in any way would you?"

"No! I'm a…good-boy." Jason punched himself inwardly. Good-boy? Seriously? Lame!

"Well, here is number." Dr. Marshall wrote down a number on his note-pad and handed the piece of note to him. "Let's start our treatment, shall we?"

"Thanks!' Jason took the note and put it safety in his pocket.

* * *

"So you went to the police office?" Reyna kept pressing on.

"Yeah." Jason confirmed.

"Oh my God." Hazel blinked. "That is just…"

"I can't believe I missed that." Reyna shook her head.

Frank sneezed. "Never mind that. Man, New York novembers are cold. Who would have thought it's warmer up there in Vancouver?"

"Get use to it, Frankie." Leo smirked. "You'll be here for a while."

"Frankie?" Frank frowned. "Honestly?"

"I think it sounds cute." Hazel offered shyly.

Piper gazed over at Jason who was busy looking at the screen of his IPhone. God, why can't Jason put down his phone? She wanted a cute relationship with him, something like what Hazel and Frank has. Not really dating, but flirting in the most subtle ways. Piper didn't want to force it either, she didn't want to become the girlfriend everybody ends up hating.

"Nico's coming over." Jason looked up from his phone. Finally, Piper's heart screamed. She might be able to squeeze out some conversation with him now he isn't paying attention to his phone.

"Is Bianca coming as well?" Piper asked sweetly.

"Don't think so."

"Damn, that babe is hot." Leo muttered earning a sharp slap from Reyna.

"Ow!" Leo rubbed his face gingerly. "Why'd you slap me? We aren't even dating or anything!"

"Who's dating? And how is my sister a babe and hot?" Nico stormed inside the room. It was evident that Nico had cried as tears were still glistening in his eyes but his normal, strong-minded personality had came back.

"For starters, she has a British accent. That's sexy." Leo explained.

"Shut up," Nico rolled his eyes. "If there's one thing I can't stand about her is her posh English accent which makes everything sound formal."

Percy got up from his seat and started patting his friends back. "Come to my house later, my mom wants to give you some tea and stuff. She said something about trying her best to comfort you."

"Tell your mom it's fine." Nico quickly said. "I don't need anything to get over my dad."

"Come anyways." Annabeth insisted.

"I really can't. I have something to do." Nico hesitated and looked around the room not as confident as usual.

"Are you okay?" Grover chewed on some leftover food from Jason's kitchen.

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. "So this morning he found out that his father is dead, lying on tombstones splattered with blood. I suppose he's all happy and great about that?"

"It's okay," Nico sat down on an empty spot. "Can I show you guys something?"

"Sure, whatever you want." Leo replied. "As long as it has nothing to do with couples, love-"

"What's wrong with that?" Reyna objected.

"It's disgusting and icky." Glancing quickly at percy and Annabeth, he gave them a don't-kill-me smile. "Couples everywhere."

"Offense!" Percy called out jabbing Leo in the ribs.

"Anyway," Nico looked hastily away from Leo and Percy who are poking each other endlessly. "It's this. The police found it on my dad's body." From his pocket, he took out a blood-stained piece of paper and showed it to everyone.

Hey there bitches,

You didn't think I'd stop after the Shooting, did you? Hades Di Angelo is a pain in the ass, I just had to kill him.

Love you all! The Shooter xo

"That has to be a girl." Piper pointed out. "Can't imagine a guy writing 'love you all' and 'xo'."

* * *

**AN: Happy late Thanksgiving! I hope your turkey tastes good. Mines got...burnt.**

**Anyway, the note won't end up to be something like PLL. I only needed the note there so it's confirmed that the Shooter killed Hades. On a totally irrelevant subject, who's excited for Christmas? I am! :c I'm already decorating my house, going christmas shopping and doing christmas stuff :)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	15. Information is Power

"Good morning, bitches." Thalia grinned and sat herself down on an empty seat a few rows away from three girls. The girls glared at her. "Hey! I know I'm not exactly invited but I'm a frequent customer here. You? Well, I doubt you are, judging by how slutty you are. You probably seduced teachers when you get into trouble with them."

"Fuck off, Grace." One of the girls rolled their eyes. "Aren't you deep enough inside of Loser-ville to be making these comments?"

Thalia shrugged. "Suit yourself, Brit."

"Last time I checked, we aren't on nickname-bases." Brittany flicked her platinum blonde hair away from her face. "Can you just get out of my sight?"

"Nope sorry." Thalia gave a smile, barbie-level in fakeness. "I'm afraid I have to sit here. My brain orders me to do so and I must obey it."

Brittany gave her friends an exasperated sigh. "I would love to ditch this but it'll land me in another detention with that skank over there." Her friends nodded in agreement.

"If you think I'm such a skank, why are you even talking to me." Thalia continued bugging them. "Ooh! Have you heard of Carpe Diem by Green Day? That song freaking good." Without looking at their horrified faces, she took out her IPhone and played the song loudly. (AN: Love that song! 3)

"Oh my God! That. Is. Disgusting. Have you ever heard of Flo Rida? Or One Direction?" Chelsea, a girl with auburn hair next to Brittany cried.

"It's not my fault if we have different taste in music." Thalia shrugged. "We don't all have the same personalities. In fact if I'm similar to you in any way, I'd kill myself. I don't want to be a whore."

"You did not say that." The third girl - Hong Kong born black haired London Chang gasped.

Brittany's green dangerous eyes flashed but she remained a cold, calm expression. "At least I have information you don't know about." She announced icily as Chelsea nudged her and whispered something into her ears.

"What is it?" Thalia laughed uneasily. What does she mean by that? Taking a quick glance at Brittany's near-perfect face, she lied. "You finally realized that your overdose of make-up make you look like a clown?"

"That I know who assaulted your brother." Brittany smiled smugly leaving Thalia's jaws drop open like a goldfish. No, she couldn't have. What? Why didn't she -, Thalia has tons of questions for her.

"Quit the chit-chat girls!" Ms. Preston clapped her hands crisply as she walked inside the room. "This is detention, not one of your place to socialize and catch up with the latest gossip."

* * *

You're loosing him, a little voice behind her mind reminded Reyna. Yes, she is aware that Jason is slowly slipping out of her grasp to Piper's. It's painful isn't it? Watching your first and current love falling for another girl. Someone prettier, someone more deserving, someone better than her.

"Jas-" Reyna called weakly as her voice didn't reach Jason's ears. She didn't want to appear like this to him. She is suppose to be powerful, beautiful, headstrong. This is not the side of her she wants to show Jason.

Piper said something as Jason laughed. It must have been something funny. He doesn't usually laugh so freely. Reyna's heart filled up quickly with envy.

"Hey! Reyna!" A cheerful voice bursted next to her. Reyna turned around and faced a curly brown haired boy.

"Hey, Leo." Reyna sighed rather tiredly. She's just not in the mood for any jokes or whatever Valdez has up his sleeves.

"Sick of seeing them, eh?" Leo traced her glance to the non-official couple yet. "Jason still won't admit that he likes her."

Reyna forced a laugh upon her throat. "He should. They are obviously into each other."

"To think I thought you and Jason are like a thing before." Leo slapped his forehead. "I should have known about Piper."

Should have known about Piper. Yes, Reyna's mind revolved around what Leo just said. She should have known about Piper.

* * *

"Who is this?" Hylla demanded from the other end.

"This is Jason," Jason tried to sound as cheerful as possible. "You..remember me?"

"Right, Jason Grace. My little sister's - never mind." Hylla muttered. "What do you want?"

"Are you currently studying in Harvard University?" Jason continued with his scripted lines.

"Yeah. Why?"

"I'm just wondering if you're able to gain access to the Harvard Medical School yearbooks?" Jason took a deep breath and asked.

"Can't you like access it online?" Hylla questioned. "They always like to brag about their successful alumnus and shit like that."

"Maybe. I didn't check." Jason confessed. "But I'm wondering if you have ever heard of Brad Marshall?"

"Brad Marshall?" She hesitated. "Hey, isn't he the hypnotizing guy?"

"Yeah."

"I bet there's tons of information on him on Google. He probably have a Wikipedia page after himself." Hylla sounded impatient. "Look, you know I'm in Harvard and how tough it is. I have to get a good grade in order to get a decent job. In order to get the grade I want, I have to start studying."

"Um..there isn't a Wikipedia page on him." He winced. "Can you just spare a bit - tiny bit - of your study time, find some information on him from the yearbooks and send it to me?"

Jason could hear a grunt from the other side. "Why do you even want to stalk him?"

"Please!" He pleaded. "It'll mean a lot to me!"

"The grades mean a lot to me too." Hylla retorted. "Fine, but will you stop bothering me?"

"Thank you!" Jason found himself grinning widely. "I'll stop bothering you, in fact bye! But thanks!"

* * *

If you accuse Nico for being way too paranoid after his father's death, he won't deny it. He has been seeing murderers, signs of killers and killings, clues, and his dead father everywhere. If the curtains waver slightly from the wind, he's probably half way to the phone ready to call the police. If a dark shadow loomed over his bed as his mom came to check on him during the night, he'll scream. Things are getting out of control but whenever somebody convinces him to go to some councilors, he'll refuse.

Nico didn't like the idea of being some freak who needed aid from other people. He believes that he's independent and doesn't need the help from anyone - let alone some dodgy strangers who's in it for the money. Nico assured himself that he'll get better once he got over the death of Hades. At the moment, it's still fresh in his mind so he couldn't stop thinking about it. He is sure that everything would be okay a few weeks later.

Backing up his side of not needing any help in his mind, Nico did not notice footsteps coming softly towards him. As it grew louder, his heart skipped a beat. Nico stared at the shadow and froze. It does look like his dead father. The shadow grew bigger and soon, he knew it was behind him. His brain panicked, he wasn't expecting his dead father to just pop in like that. He didn't know what to do, he wasn't prepared. How do you survive zombie attacks, he asked himself.

"Are you okay?" A female voice asked gently. Nico held his breath. His father does not have a mild voice, let alone a female's one. Who can it be? The Killer? So the murderer is actually a girl?

"Nico?" A hand touched his shoulders as he juImped.

"Who the fuck are you? Dad? I thought you're dead? Oh my gosh! What the fuck? Dad you're a girl? A teenaged girl?" Nico found himself rambling before his sister, Bianca. His fingers twisted into a gun symbols facing her.

"Woah. Calm down." Bianca put her hands in front of her defensively. "How do I even look like dad?"

"Whatever." Nico muttered.

"I don't like the way you're so jumpy on everything." Bianca stated worried for her brother.

"You don't like many things about me." Nico pointed out. "The way I swear, the way I'm rude to people, the way I-"

Bianca's lips turned into a small smile. "But we're still siblings. I have to bear your silly habits."

"And I have to keep back the urge of punching you every time you speak." Nico shrugged. "It's a hard job, I understand."

Bianca smile turned to a frown almost instantly. "Look Nico, you can stop being negative about things and as siblings, we don't just discriminate each other because of our accents. I'd like to see you try staying in England for years without developing a British Accent. Also, a lot of people including me love it!"

"Okay, I get it, what are you? Teacher? Mom? Mrs. Di Angelo?" Nico rolled his eyes. "I'm planning on going through father's stuff." Nico admitted softly.

Bianca almost lost her balance. Look through their dad's stuff? That is a huge no-no everybody in the family knows not to do. Who knows what you may find in those documents? It's not a secret to the Di Angelo family members that Hades keep dark, dangerous secrets only very few or even nobody knows. Once you possessed those information, it's like a one way ticket to hell. The things people can manipulate you for all the info. "What?" She splutters.

"You heard me."

"I know!" Bianca exclaimed. "But looking through dad's stuff? That's-"

"Absurd? Ridiculous? Stupid?" Nico offered.

"All of them above" Bianca nodded.

Nico shook his head. "Then you're wrong. The information dad got is crucial - important to everything. I'll know who assaulted Jason and Piper, I'll know who the Shooter is and I'll know who killed dad."

"The price you pay for it will be too high!" Bianca cried. "Imagine, how many people would die for what you'll know."

"Information is power." Nico's obsidian eyes gleamed. "Right now, everyone is weak. They need somebody like dad to drive them somewhere. That somebody has to be powerful, strong and knowledgable. These information is a straight path to the top. I can not let this chance slip past. It's too good to watch it go."

"Don't do it." His sister urged. "My instincts tell me it's a bad idea. I have a feeling it's going to lead to something terrible."

"Instict? Feel? Psh.. It couldn't be that bad." He laughed as he realized his vocals are growing weaker as if he is doubting himself as well.

"Never doubt yourself." Nico rubbed his eyes as Hades' whisper flooded his mind. The whisper was so ghosty, it couldn't have been real but the voice, everything reminded Nico of his father.

* * *

Thalia Grace tapped aggressively on her keyboard. Who the fuck is Brittany Parson and how does she know who assaulted her brother?

'Tell me.' She typed furiously on Facebook chat. She had just unblocked Brittany to ask her for details.

Seen. 17:34. Thalia could see that Brittany had seen what she typed to her right away. While other people are complaining about the new Facebook addition of the 'seen' function, Thalia is enjoying it. Now, people couldn't use the 'oh, sorry. I was busy and I didn't see it' excuse when they don't answer people. She hated when people blow her off like that. This 'seen' thing is really working for her.

'Answer. Answer me now.' She typed. Seen. 17:35.

"Argh!" She screamed frustrated as it became obvious Brittany didn't want to tell her and is teasing her right now. She is probably enjoying this, watching Thalia getting angry. Calm down, she told herself. She is not giving Brittany any pleasure.

'Thalia, it's not that important knowing who assaulted your brother is it?' Brittany finally replied.

'It is.' Thalia quickly answered. 'Tell me. I'll do anything.'

Seen. 17:40. No answers. Thalia grunted loudly and shut her Macbook rapidly. Fuck this, she should have known Brittany is never going to tell her anything. She probably doesn't even know. She is only saying this to mock her.

* * *

"Annabeth!" A childish voice hissed behind the lockers. Annabeth turned and saw Leo hiding behind the locker peeping about the corridor.

"What?" She asked rather irritably.

"You know about-" Leo shook his head. "Come with me." Without another word, he dragged her into the janitor's office.

"The janitor's office." Annabeth widened her eyes. "How..overused and this place stinks."

"That's why nobody goes here!" Leo told her. "At least not in the movies but if everybody got the same idea that nobody ever goes here..well, this place would be the next hot spot in the school."

"Let's hope not." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "So why'd you drag me in this small, crowded, smelly place?"

"You know about Luke." Leo said seriously. Annabeth haven't seen him so grave before. "And you didn't tell the police. You lied."

Annabeth gave her friend a weak smile. "I did. Thanks for backing me up."

"But why did you do so? Thought you were a all goody good, tell the police everything type of person."

"Pfft..really?" Annabeth giggled.

"Everybody thinks you're that kind of girl." Leo announced to her. "You don't know that?"

"Apparently nobody knows me well enough." Annabeth smiled.

"But why didn't you tell the police about Luke?" Leo pressed on. "It's like Emily not telling Hanna, Aria or Spencer if she figured who A is."

"Pretty Little Liars?" Annabeth raised her eyebrows. "You watch that show?"

"Whatever!" Leo muttered quickly as a small blush crept on his cheeks. "Just answer me. Why didn't you tell the police? You knew Luke was alive. You probably knew where he was all these years. Don't lie to me."

Annabeth found it hard to meet her friend's eye which is odd. It's usually Leo who doesn't want to meet hers, now it's like the world's turned upside down. "Okay. I knew - we both knew Luke was alive but I swear, I swear I didn't know where he was all these years."

"Why did you lie to be that day and said Luke was your cousin?" Leo's eyes bounced wildly as if he's trying to grasp a concept he didn't quite understand. "I should have guessed. Seriously? Your cousin?"

Annabeth laughed again. "That was funny. I guess me and Luke do have a sibling look kind of thing. The blonde hair."

"Okay..this is awkward." Leo backed away. "I'm the one usually laughing and you're the one trying to get stuff out of me. This is hard."

"Welcome to my world!" Annabeth heaved a sigh. "Anyway, I met Luke in the cemetery when I was visiting the graves of the Shooting. You know, I always go early so it's not crowded. He looked really sick and I offered him to stay at my house for old times sake but we never really talked properly. He said he had business to do around town and was suppose to leave in a few days but he was still around like a week-"

"So the part where he is staying longer than he actually is, is true." Leo nodded. "Even if he looked really sick, why would you offer him a place to stay? And what old times sake?"

"Some math competition is held around this time so all the hotels are booked. He does need a place to stay!" Annabeth explained a bit defensively. "We used to be..best friends, I guess. I always considered him as an older brother and I was the sister he never had. I couldn't just leave somebody who I was so close with to shrivel and die. You should have seen the state we met each other. Plus, it's November! God, New York Novembers aren't exactly hot and sunny!"

"That's it?" Leo held out his hands as Annabeth nodded sincerely. "Well, if you won't tell the police anything, can you at least tell me if you got some follow up to Luke or anything? Come on, I'm like already in this thing."

"Fine." Annabeth looked at her watch rather anxiously. "Now can I go? English class!"

"Go ahead." Leo eyed his friend closely and opened the janitor door letting himself get out of the dark and musty room before Annabeth.

"Some kind of gentleman you are." Annabeth muttered under her breath.

* * *

**AN: Who woke up and ran straight to your advent calendar to open the first little box up? Me! Okay, the chocolate tasted average but it's December 1st! alkhfoiwedlifh I'm just so excited for the christmas season! I started a little mini-series of stories called '12 Days of Christmas' to honor this year's christmas! It's a 12 chaptered Jasper (Jason/Piper) story to keep up the holiday spirit. If you're interested, please go check it out :)**

**Back on the story, I was actually going to post this chapter tomorrow but December the 1st just seemed like a better and more special day to post this so here it is! I hope you enjoy it as much as I had fun writing this**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	16. Sincerely, Pork Chops

"Thals!" Annabeth whispered at her phone.

An annoyed voice answered her. "Annabeth, what the fuck do you want from me at 5am in the morning?"

"Did Jason tell you anything?"

"What?" Thalia's voice quavered from the other end. She was thinking about Brittany and the attacker of Jason. Did Jason knew that somebody just out of reach knew the answer?

"What happened during on Saturday." Annabeth explained as Thalia breathed in relieve. Okay, so her encounter with Brittany was on Monday. They must be talking about different things.

"And?"

"Luke." Annabeth hissed hoarsely as if she is trying to believe it herself. "He's back and gone."

"Annabeth," Thalia said sternly. "I want you to tell me everything. Every bit of what happened."

* * *

Jason checked his email for the thousandth time. No answer. He wondered if Hylla was lying about helping him find information on Brad Marshall. Okay, so maybe only a day passed since the phone call but Jason is expecting some kind of report quick. If he wanted this to lag on, he could have board a plane and fly to Harvard to stalk Dr. Marshall himself. Sure, it'll take a few hours there and back, the arrangements for hotels and basically, the trip won't be made until at least another week but as Zeus Grace owns a plane company, he'll get a free ride.

"Jason! Get your fat ass over here for dinner!" Thalia screeched from the dining room underneath him.

"Go ahead and start eating!" Jason yelled back. "I don't care."

"I already ate, plus your food will get cold and disgusting." Thalia replied loudly. It's a good thing neither of their parents is back from work yet, they would not approve this conversation through floors. "If you're not coming, can I eat a bit of your steak? It's like sitting there, and it's so tempting."

"No!" Jason cried. "And shut up, I'm concentrating!"

"At what?" A laugh traveled from downstairs. "Video-calling Piper or something? Hey, Pipes! Can you transfer your boyfriend's attention from you to the food?"

"She's not my boyfriend and I'm not even interacting with her." Jason's expression was not amused when he heard his sister. "Go do something else!" Jason called as he heard Thalia grunt and walked away. Finally, peace he thought to himself as he clicked the 'refresh' button again.

New Email - Hylla Jennings

Finally! Jason felt like screaming. After all the time he spent in front of his laptop clicking the refresh button absent-mindedly, it's finally here. His heart pounded for some reason as he clicked into the email. He felt like it's an email from Stanford informing him whether he got into the University or not. Jason sighed, it was an obsession of his since he was 5 to get into Stanford. Opening this email is like finding out if his life-long dream is coming true or not.

**Jason,**

**I feel like strangling you right now. Do you know how much trouble I almost got into for getting your stupid information? Anyway, I don't want to hear from you again. Just fuck off my life unless it's something more important than not getting expelled from Harvard.**

**Name: Brad Marshall**

**Age: 38**

**Birthday: May 25th**

**Graduated: 1998, Harvard Medical School. Honors Degree**

**Professor Riley's observation: Marshall is a shy, quiet student who likes to sit in the back. Although he does not contribute a lot to discussions, he is a good student and always hands in his homework on time with great quality. He has a reputation among his students to be quite disagreeable at times and not an excellent team player. (Riley wrote a lot more than this but I'm not spending time repeating everything he wrote, okay? I have essays to complete.)**

**Random information I manage to grasp:**

**- Marshall is rather unlikeable as he had crossed Zeus Grace (hey, isn't that your dad?) on the first day. Apparently, your dad - or another Zeus Grace - is very popular and everybody sided with him.**

**- He is notable to have 'no friends' for the first two years but became quite close to a certain Hades Di Angelo on the last year. (I'm really no expert on your, or Reyna's friends but isn't that little gothic kid's dad named Hades? I mean, he died pretty recently right? It was plastered on the New York News Headlines.)**

**Hylla.**

**P.S. I know I posted a few questions in the email, don't bother to reply them. I don't need another email or anything from you.**

* * *

Nico Di Angelo opened his father's drawers. Yes, he knew it's a risky thing to do but he felt like it had to be done. At least, he have to go through them before the idea of looking through Hades' things is implanted on the police's head. Nico felt like somebody other than the stinking police needed to know these stuff.

The drawer was long, containing many different files all color coded. Nico didn't know what all these color meant but he guessed each color represents a different case. A black folder at the very back caught Nico's attention as it was bigger than the rest. Curiously, he took the folder out and spotted white official letters printed on top.

**Goode High Shooting.**

Bingo! Nico smiled, although there are probably many interesting cases he would love to learn about in the drawer, the Goode High Shooting is one he will definitely be most intrigued by. With butterflies in his stomach, Nico opened the file and found a lot of documents, post it notes, pieces of evidence in plastic bags inside. Hades Di Angelo's neat small handwriting was found next to almost everything annotating what it was.

Nico took an A4 document near the top which was marked as 'Drew Tanaka'. Hm..Nico thought, so Drew's death is related to the Shooting. Many people had suspected that before - and Nico did too - but whatever his father had in here is hardcore evidence. He knew whatever's written on the sheet of paper will reveal the truth and bring people down.

The A4 paper turned out to be a fax from somebody named 'Pork Chop' to his dad.

**November 2012,**

**Di Angelo Mansion, New York**

**Dear Hades,**

**Pepperoni Pizza has evidence that Drew Tanaka's death is not an accident. I repeat, is not an accident. Go to Steak's house for evidence. During the boat ride, Drew wanted a picture of her and the other people on the raft. The photo reveals details of who It is. Still trying to recover the picture.**

**Sincerely,**

**Pork Chops**

Nico didn't know whether to laugh or continue reading the documents in the file. Honestly? Pepperoni Pizza? Steak? Pork Chops? His dad must be hungry when he made up the code names. Part of him wondered who these people could be. They are obviously his dad's friends and possibly the spies keeping him up to date. These people can be anyone, Nico told himself. His dad knew a lot of people.

With great hesitation, Nico closed the folder and put it back inside the drawer in it's place. Okay, now he knows that Drew's death is a murder and the murderer is revealed in a particular picture, that's enough. Nico wanted to solve a bit of the mystery at a time. He felt like he couldn't be in his dad's shoe. Knowing too much information at once could lead to his dad's fate - death.

Alas, the picture can be anywhere. It can be on printed, on camera, on a thumb drive, on a laptop, anything. It greatly depends on if anyone found it yet. If the killer had hid the camera, trashed it, burnt it or didn't know about it. Nico realized that his dad has always been in a more dangerous position than anyone knew. Hades' life depends on taking chances and one mistake, one slip can lead to a great fall.

* * *

"Nico!" Bianca scolded her brother. "I told you not to look through the drawer!"

"I got to admit." Annabeth breathed. "It was a huge risk. I mean, I don't exactly know your dad or anything but by judging what you told me, it is."

Nico looked irritably at his sister. "Well, I looked through it. You can't go back in time and erase it now. Besides, it was only one document I looked at. Didn't even peep at anything else."

"So Drew's death is not an accident." Leo raised his eyebrows. "I knew it! What did Archimedes say - Eureka!"

"Dude, I don't think it's an appropriate time to say 'Eureka'." Frank frowned.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Frankie bro. As long as it's Archimedes, it's gold."

"Actually, I think Eureka is pretty appropriate." Nico offered.

"Pepperoni Pizza. Pork Chops. Steak." Jason muttered. "Chicken Wings."

"What? Chicken wings?" Annabeth shot a look at Jason.

"Somebody's getting hungry." Leo grinned.

"Guys?" Bianca looked at her brother's friends. "Concentrate here. So what do you guys think of the situation?"

"The food mentioned in the fax are real people." Percy blurted as his girlfriend gave him a 'duh' expression. "Wait, did that sound stupid? I mean, was it obvious?"

"No." Piper said sarcastically. "We all thank you for pointing that ridiculously apparent point out."

"Guess it worth telling you guys then," Percy shrugged. "If you guys haven't figured out."

"Percy-" Annabeth sighed. "Whatever, you'll never get it."

Hazel looked around the room shyly. "I think we have to focus, not go off topic. It's not always we get to meet Bianca and this is pretty crucial."

Bianca shot her a thank-you smile and faced the rest of the group. "I don't think any of us should tell the police or any government authority about this as my father is never in the best terms with them. He won't like it."

"Not telling the police something?" Frank gulped. "That's risky. We're suppose to be helping them."

"If you look at it this way," Annabeth paused. "The police isn't exactly on our side either. In fact, they were suspicious of us during the funeral. They evidentially don't really like us so why should we help them?"

"It's kind of like two different teams trying to achieve the same thing." Jason concluded after analyzing what Annabeth just said.

"I say we do it." Piper threw a confident smile across the room which boosted everyone's energy although they are still unsure about the idea.

"I'm in." Leo raised his eyebrows challenging his friends. "As long as it's dangerous - I'm in."

* * *

**AN: Okay, I have to admit I was hungry when I wrote this. I guess we could all learn that food makes great nicknames now. **

**I would like to tell you guys that I won't be updating this story as often as I have the 12 Days of Christmas to continue, I'm going to spend quite some time with one of my besties who came back from England and christmassy stuff! :) Don't worry, by not updating this story as often, I mean like updating it once a week. Idk..I guess it depends on how my schedule goes but I promise I would at least update once a week!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	17. Catriona

Catriona looked at the room doctors confined her in.

"She's in shock." One doctor murmured sympathetically outside of the room.

"She'll be fine." Another doctor observed from the corridor.

Cat sighed. Why is she even here? Sure, she was on the raft where Drew got murdered and was supposedly to be 'in shock' but she isn't. She just didn't feel like answering the police's questions and didn't answer them. They seriously have to hire better doctors.

As a team of doctors outside continued starring through the glass window, Cat thought back to the incident, how she ended up being locked in a room.

* * *

Drew looked at the bamboo raft. It is sufficient to carry Ms. Indigo, Kerri, Cat, Kaylee and herself across the river. However, Drew was pretty sure she'll get wet during the ride. Calm down, she told herself. Getting wet would probably be the best thing next to all the other activities she had to choose from.

"Can I go on first?' Drew asked politely. "I don't like being on the side of the raft."

Ms. Indigo frowned but nodded. "Sure, go ahead." Drew smiled with satisfaction. This is why Ms. Indigo is her favorite teacher. She is in her early 20's and had just graduated from Art School. She is quiet, gentle and soft-spoken.

"Teacher!" Kaylee's blue eyes grew wide. "You don't just let students go first. You're the teacher, you have every rights to go first."

Drew's eyes grew cold. People assume that Kerri, Cat and Kaylee were her best friends but really, they hated each other. They took every chance to go against each other. Kerri, Cat and Kaylee against her.

"Oh yeah." Ms. Indigo nodded, torn between which girl she should be listening to. "Drew, sorry dear!"

Kaylee smirked as Drew had to step out of the way for Ms. Indigo to step on the raft.

"Kaylee, I suggest you to go last." Drew smiled coldly. "The last one gets the best seat and we all want to treat you like a princess don't we?"

"Drew!" Catriona said sharply. "You know it's best for you not to say anything under the circumstances!"

Drew's brown eyes flashed but she knew exactly what Cat was talking about and piped down. Fuck Cat and her little, know-it-all brain.

As soon as Ms. Indigo and all 4 girls were on the raft, they started paddling towards the currents. Ms. Indigo looked at the girls and smiled wryly. "Girls, you know what to do don't you?"

"Yup!" Kerri nodded as all of them remember the briefing they got before they were to build the raft. They all had different assignments during the raft and had to report their findings to Ms. Indigo the next Wednesday. Easy! Ms. Indigo would compliment any reports no matter how sucky they are and give good grades. She didn't have the guts to insult one one them.

"Can I get a photo of all of us together on the raft?" Kerri asked suddenly bringing her waterproof polaroid camera out of her bag.

"Sure!" Ms. Indigo nodded as Cat and Kaylee got into position.

"You joining the picture?" Kaylee gestured towards Drew who has been sulking in the side. Drew got a bad feeling about this, especially when they didn't like each other. However, everyone knows Kaylee loves uploading pictures onto Facebook and this picture will be gold. It will show that Drew is actually friends with the three.

In Goode High, there is the most popular girl - Piper McLean with her movie-star dad and Hollywood socialite mom. Whoever that is friends with her is considered to be popular and sociable. Everybody wants to be friends with Piper, mostly to get into Hollywood, meet celebrities and hopefully get a few snapshots of them on the latest magazines. However, there is only one clique in the school where people would like to become apart of and it's formed by Cat, Kaylee, Kerri, Brittany, Chelsea and London. If you're a new girl, the one thing that can lead you to instant fame across the school is to become apart of this clique and Piper's friend.

If Piper and Cat were friends, they would be way out of everybody's league. They all remembered middle school and nobody wants to repeat that. Luckily, Piper and Cat fell apart a few years ago and they don't seem like they are getting back together in any ways.

A picture with Cat, Kaylee and Kerri can lead to that instant fame Drew wanted. It was something she left behind but never got back. It wasn't Piper, it was Drew who was the most popular girl at high school before she left. Now she came back, everything is lost. Drew hesitated trying to indicate that she didn't really want the photo but reluctantly nodded. "Count me in."

Cat's smile twisted into a sly shape and made space for Drew as she slipped into position.

"3, 2, 1!" Kerri called behind the camera as somebody grabbed a sharp knife from their bag and stuck it behind Drew Tanaka's back.

* * *

Piper McLean walked into the hospital with a small box of chocolates. If Cat has visited her when she was unconscious, it's only fair to visit her back when she's stuck in the hospital. Hopefully, the visit before meant that they had both forgiven each other.

"May I help you?" A young nurse asked behind the counter offering a bright, warm smile.

"Yes, I'm here to visit Cat. Catriona Fontaine."

"Ah, poor girl isn't she?" The nurse shook her head and sighed. "Take the lift to the first floor and turn straight left. You should see a row of rooms with glass windows. She should be in one of those rooms."

"Thanks." Piper turned and went up to the first floor by elevator. Cat was in the first room as mentioned by the nurse looking outside of the building. Piper looked at her wistfully and almost turned back. She felt nervous going inside to meet the girl she once told everything to.

"Hello, and you are?" A doctor tapped Piper's shoulders gently.

"Piper. Piper McLean. I'm here to visit Cat."

"Ah, you can see that she still isn't very responsive." The doctor glanced inside the room. "She had spent hours gazing out of the building. You are her friend, I assume? Maybe she'll talk to you."

You are her friend, I assume? Piper's mind repeated that phrase. Ex-friend, she wanted to correct the doctor but couldn't bring herself to. After all those years, she had to admit that Cat had never stopped being her friend. Yeah, they haven't talk but that doesn't mean they aren't friends. Just..friends who don't talk to each other. "Maybe." Piper nodded.

"You can go inside." The doctor opened the glass door. "Catriona? You have guests!"

Cat's gaze tore away from the window and remained on Piper as the doctor closed the door. Neither of the girls talked to each other, just staring. A few years ago, they would be chattering about the latest gossip but now they are silent.

"Hi." Piper breathed with butterflies in her stomach.

"Hey." Cat nodded.

"You alright?"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

Small talk. Nothing like what they would have been a few years ago. Piper wanted to chat to her freely as if they were best friends again. She wanted that feeling where she can tell everything to her.

"The doctors kept on pestering me so I ignored them. Like Tiara."

Piper laughed. Tiara. Cat was talking about one of a movie - more like documentary they watched when they were 13. It was about a girl called Tiara who never talked to anyone for her whole life and her parents got a group of scientists to figure out what's wrong with her. Turns out, she just didn't want to talk as talking to people annoyed her and she found it frustrating answering all those questions she has been asked.

"They do think you are in shock." Piper told her. "They are like stalking you outside of the glass recording everything you do."

"I know." Cat nodded. "It's so annoying! It's kind of like we're at the movie premiers with your dad and there's the paparazzi wanting to know Tristan McLean's daughter and her friend does."

"Oh yeah," Piper giggled. "I remembered that time. They stalked us all around New York."

It was almost like they're 13 again, Giggling, chatting, talking about things nobody but they'll know.

"Oh by the way," Piper remembered something given to her a few weeks ago. "Why did you give me a phone number when I was unconscious?"

Catriona's face grew pale. "You didn't call, did you?"

"No, sorry." Piper shook her head rather embarrassedly. "Sorry! I kept meaning to but I always forget."

"Good." Cat's pretty blue eyes narrowed. "Don't call that number. Just don't. Anyway, do you remember the time we were watching Hairspray and Miles Wrentz was trying to get a good view of the movie screen outside of my house? God! That gave me a heart attack when I saw him!"

* * *

"O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree! Thy leaves are so unchanging!" A children choir sang at the front door of Reyna's house.

"Great singing!" Reyna's mom applauded.

"Why are you going christmas caroling so early?" Reyna's dad complained to a whole bunch of kids.

Reyna sighed, she can hear all of these up in her room. It's very distracting especially when she is studying for her maths test which she needs to get at least 90% of it right.

She couldn't say she isn't tempted to sing along the kids. The thing she likes most about christmas is singing the christmas carols. Every christmas, she belts out the tunes loudly but not this year. Good grades come first.

"Another song!" Reyna's mom cheered. "These kids are good!"

"These kids have the wrong timing." Reyna's dad grumbled. "You're suppose to carol on Christmas Eve! It's common sense."

"Rudolph the red nose reindeer, has a very shiny nose!" The kids happily sang.

Reyna threw her maths book down in annoyance. No, she could not work like this. She took out her IPod from a corner and put it on her christmas shuffle list.

"Last Christmas I gave you my heart, but the very next day you gave it away." Taylor Swift sang melodically through the speakers.

Unconsciously, Reyna sang along softly as the flipped the pages of her textbook one by one. Soon, she was actually more into the carols than the maths. The music drowned everything in reality, she didn't hear the kids choir moving onto the next house and she certainly didn't hear her parents coming into her room.

"Reyna!" Her mom scolded. "What are you doing? Listening to christmas carols?"

"It's not even December the 25th!" Her dad frowned. "What's up with kids nowadays?"

"Just having some holiday spirit, mom." Reyna mumbled. "You were listening to christmas carols too! The kids were singing it."

"That's different." Her mom defended herself. "I don't have a test to be studying for."

* * *

"Hey, Rach!" Annabeth greeted her friend. "I was just looking through the yearbooks." She tried making herself sound casual. "Look at Percy when he was younger!"

"Um.." Rachel looked around nervously. "Do you want to do something else? Like catch a movie or something?"

Anxiousness, Annabeth observed. A sign showing she has a secret to hide. "Naw! Come on!" She grabbed Rachel's arm and pulled her down to look at the yearbooks with her. "Say, Reyna looks pretty is this picture!" She pointed to the picture innocently. The same two year old picture were she spotted a 'Rachel Elizabeth Dare' on while Rachel is suppose to be new.

"Look at me!" Annabeth exclaimed. "I look crap! And Piper is like Angelina Jolie next to me!"

"Yeah." Rachel's green eyes darted around the room. "You sure you don't want to visit the ice cream parlor or something?"

"Hey!" Annabeth ignored her friend and pointed straight on Rachel on the picture. "Don't this girl look kind of like you?"

"Kind of." Rachel's fingers fidgeted and slam the yearbook close abruptly. "Come on, let's go to Starbucks. My treat."

Annabeth turned the pages to the picture calmly. "Rachel, why are you in this picture?"

"Me? What? No! That is just someone who look like me! Oh my god! How can we be so alike! I swear, it's not me!" Rachel rambled on.

Denial. Final stage of a secret. "Rachel, just tell me what's wrong." Annabeth asked softly. "It's not a secret anymore."

"I..I can't!" Tears streamed unexpectedly down Rachel's face. "I'm sorry, Annabeth! I can't!" She sobbed and ran straight out of the door.

"How rude." Matthew, one of her brothers stormed down the staircase. "She just ran straight out without saying goodbye or giving me candies."

* * *

**AN: Okay, Rachel got a bit too emotional/cheesy over there but I suppose if you have a secret that big, you would be just like her. Don't worry, I hope my next chapter would explain why all that happened but I guess it depends on how the story flows, doesn't it?**

**For all Swifties out there, IT'S TAYLOR SWIFT'S BIRTHDAY! And happy (belated) 12/12/12! It won't be until next century we'll get a date like that...**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	18. The Survey

"I honestly don't remember what happened." Kaylee told the principal. "It was kind of like a blur. I remember getting on the raft then boom! I'm here."

"Exactly!" Kerri agreed with her friend. "I'm still trying to get over Drew's death!"

"Girls, I realize that you won't do that to our fellow student Drew, but we still have to take you as suspects. The police believe there is a possibility that one of you done it since you're on the same raft."

"If somebody did it, I didn't see it." Kaylee said boldly. "And I normally see everything."

"What did Ms. Indigo said?" Kerri asked quietly.

"Nothing," The principal frowned. "She left town with a resignation letter in my office before I got a chance to speak to her."

"Wh-Why?" Kerri's eyes widened. "I have something to tell her!"

"I hope you girls haven't done something terrible making her want to leave."

"No. We haven't." Cat's firm voice broke in. "Thank you, Principal for interrogating us. I believe we have to get back to class now. I'll contact Ms. Indigo myself."

"How? Not even I have her contact now." Principal protested as Cat led Kerri and Kaylee out of the office.

* * *

"Piper, want to come shopping with us later?" Hazel asked her friend. They were planning on christmas shopping for gifts, decorations and anything they needed.

"Sorry! Not today!' Piper shook her head sadly. "I'm going to Cat's house. Sorry!"

"I thought you guys weren't friends?" Hazel raised her eyebrows.

"We are now!" Piper grinned. "Sorry, but it'll be nice to catch up with each other especially since I haven't talk to her for years!"

"Alright. See you tomorrow!" Hazel waved to Piper who is heading towards Cat.

"See you!"

"Not coming again?" Annabeth had a strange smile on like she knew what was going on.

"Nope. She has to catch up with Cat though!" Hazel said defensively. "They were best friends! I mean, if you haven't seen us for more than three years, won't you want to spend some time with us?"

"Stop." Reyna said. "You don't have to defend Piper for practically ditching us on everything. She has Cat now."

"But!"

"Hazel, let's go." Annabeth dragged her friend towards the bus stop. "

* * *

"Have you seen Rachel at school today?" Grover asked.

"Nope." Percy shook his head. "Why?"

"Have to finish the environmental project with her." Grover replied. Right, who in the right mind would take classes all about conserving the environment and saving our planet? Apparently, when Grover and Rachel saw it on one of their choices, they knew it was a subject they had to take.

"I haven't seen her around lately." Percy stated. "It's almost like she's avoiding us or something."

"Why would she avoid us though?" Grover wondered aloud. "It's not like we've done anything bad to her or something. What, does she have something she wants to hide from us?"

Rachel Elizabeth Dare is at the door of Grover's house about to ring the doorbell to finish their project. She heard the loud conversation of the boy's and stopped herself from pressing the doorbell. Yes, avoiding them. Something to hide. It's almost like Grover already knew it. He has hit the bulls eyes.

Percy wondered about and said, "If she had a secret, she probably told us. We are her friends!"

Rachel closed her eyes. They are friends so why couldn't she just tell them? They won't laugh at her or do anything terrible to her. Friends are there to support each other and they all knew that. If only it wasn't because of Them. Whatever, Rachel told herself. That was the past, They can do whatever they want now she has done what they asked. They can't bother her anymore, they had a deal and she is not to reveal Them.

"I'll go check if she's online." Grover sighed. "She's probably going to be there in the next lesson, we can work then."

Rachel slumped down feeling useless. She didn't have the guts to continue the project - not because she haven't done the research or anything, but because Grover is too close to the truth. What if they confront her inside like what Annabeth's done? She couldn't answer their questions. Not for the first time, Rachel wondered if they would still be friends with her if they knew the truth. Probably not, and she couldn't loose them either.

* * *

"Don't speak so loudly!' Kerri hissed.

"I'm not!" Kaylee muttered indigently. "But I can't believe Ms. Indigo would ditch us like that."

"We made the deal!"

"Where's Cat?" Kaylee demanded.

"With Piper." Kerri answered. "She would be..useful."

"Yes. Piper McLean." Kaylee's gaze seemed faraway. "We have been hunting a long time for her. She would be the key."

"Shh! I think someone is coming!" Kerri pushed her hands onto Kaylee's lips and dragged her behind the lockers as Annabeth walked down the hallway.

"Mmm!" Kaylee muttered evidentially trying to speak while being muffled.

Annabeth doesn't have the best pair of ears but it seemed to pick up everything that seems wrong. From what she picked up from Kerri and Kaylee's conversation, Cat is not going to be a good friend for Piper. Annabeth shook her head, how is she going to break it to Pipes without any actual evidence and with Hazel sticking up for her? People would probably think she is going crazy.

How is she going to break it to Piper?

* * *

"Shh!" Hazel put her finger onto her lips.

"Okay." Leo whispered "I'm just walking quietly."

BANG! Leo bumped into a potted plant.

"Leo!" Hazel yelped.

"Sorry!" Leo mouthed and walked away from the plant slowly making sure he wasn't making any noise.

SCREECH! Leo's shoe hit the floor as he froze refusing to meet Hazel's eyes.

"Take off your shoes." Hazel urged.

Knowing that he doesn't have a reason not to, Leo reluctantly took them off and placed them carefully behind the potted plant.

"You are clumsy." Hazel scolded her friend.

"I can't help it!" Leo defended.

"Okay," Hazel nodded. "Now let's get onto stalking Brad Marshall." She got out a notepad with notes written neatly across the pages. "So he should be living around here."

"Why don't lets ring on his doorbell and pretend to be selling girl scout cookies?" Leo asked.

Hazel raised one of her bushy eyebrows. "Leo, a boy. Selling girl scout cookies?"

After realizing the teensy gender flaw in his plan, Leo scratched his curly brown hair. "Do you have a wig? Like how Miley has her blonde wig when she's Hannah Montana?"

"Hannah Montana?" Hazel frowned. Leo sighed, she is really out of what's going on in the 21st century. Her family is obsessed with the 1920's or some other eras and bought her up with the surroundings of it. They have absolutely no clue of what's happening now.

"As I always say," Leo shook his head. "You are missing out a lot."

"How about I pretend to ask him questions for our school survey?" Hazel asked.

"Sure!" Leo nodded. "I guess but the girl scouts cookie idea is less suspicious."

"Leave all the talking to me." Hazel instructed as Leo groaned but reluctantly agreed.

Ring! Hazel rang the doorbell and held her notepad out trying to look responsible and on task.

The door opened and a middle aged woman stepped out. "Hello, what do you want?" Her voice wasn't particularly icy but not very warm either.

"I am just-" Hazel squeaked and found herself lost of words. She was expecting either Dr. Marshall to appear when she can imagine herself speaking rather boldly or at least a kind-hearted woman.

"We want to conduct a school survey." Leo finished her sentence ignoring her request to do all the talking.

"A school survey, huh?" The woman placed her hands on her hips. "Make it quick, I don't have all day."

"For starters, may we ask what your name is?" Hazel managed to mumble.

"Lilah. Lilah Marshall." She answered.

"Do you have a husband?" Leo asked.

"Yes." She paused. "Why are you asking this?"

"It's for our school survey," Leo shrugged. "I told you."

"Yes, but this is my private information." She argued. "What is your survey about? Why does it need to know my name and if I'm married or not."

"It's for our project, on married couples." Leo smirked.

"Right." Lilah Marshall nodded still feeling suspicious. "Next question?"

"Do you love your husband?" Leo asked.

"Yes, very much."

"How often do you have sex with him?"

"Leo!" Hazel punched her friend's arm. "What kind of question is that?"

"I'd rather not answer that." Lilah stiffened up.

"Moving on," Hazel glared at Leo. "What profession are you currently in and your husbands?"

"I'm a housewife, actually." Mrs. Marshall told them. "You may have heard of my husband, he is Brad Marshall. The famous doctor."

"Sorry?" Leo pretended to be ignorant of him which he probably will be if he wasn't friends with Jason. "I never heard of him. I'm really sorry, I don't know any celebrities." And glancing almost teasingly at Hazel, he added. "I only know celebrities or anybody famous from the 1920's. I mean, yeah the wall street crash! Wait, is this the right decade?"

Hazel frowned. What the..? "Sorry, my partner is rather silly sometimes. Everybody knows the 1928's aren't only about the wars! They have-"

"Got it." Mrs. Marshall said rather hastily. "Any other questions? I have a feeling my son would be waking up soon."

"Your son?' Leo repeated. "Ah, that makes everything more interesting! May we ask a few questions about him?"

"I would say no but that would sound rude so let's just quicken the pace."

"What is his name and how old is he?" Leo asked trying to sound professional.

"Ryan and he's only 6 months old."

"I see you had sex around 15 months ago then." Leo nodded. "Not bad."

"Leo!" Hazel cried rather alarmed. She sighed, what kind of 16 year olds would go around and ask strangers whether or not they had sex with their husbands and figure out when the last time they did it was? 21st Century kids. This is why she never really fit in with the other kids. Everybody had moved on, a lot.

"Okay! So um, does your husband earn enough money to support your family? Do you often borrow money from the bank or fall into debts?" Leo tried steering his questions to the less suspicious kinds.

"Yes, I told you he's famous. Naturally, he earns a lot. We do fall into debts from time to time but we..well, we pretty much get back on track easily." Mrs. Marshall replied hesitantly.

"Debts ah." Leo nodded having no clue where he is going but wanted to sound like he's having a proper survey. "What kind of debts? Like from buying a new house, a sleek sports car, education fees?"

"They aren't exactly debts." Mrs. Marshall said tensely. "I don't know if I should be telling this to you or not. You are teenagers, you probably knew about the society we have out there more than me but I don't want to risk it."

"The society we have around is quite dodgy." Leo seemed to knew what Mrs. Marshall talked about but Hazel did not have a clue. "So you got into debts from it?"

"Yes." She answered, for some reason sadly. "I wish we aren't involve though, but we're way too in it to get back out now."

"Your husband too I'm assuming is involved in this?"

Mrs. Marshall nodded as she covered her hands on her mouth. "I honestly don't know why I'm saying this to a couple of strangers. I don't even know you! I think it'd be best if I went back inside." She gestured to her house.

"Maybe you should." Leo shrugged. "Don't worry, I obviously won't repeat what you told me for my project. In fact, I'd probably forget about it within a few days. I have a poor memory."

"Whatever your names are," Mrs. Marshall glanced at Hazel and Leo and whispered in such a soft tone that they won't guess she have. "Don't follow my footsteps into this. You'll regret it, I swear. Get the hell out of the deal and try to lead a normal life." Without looking back again, she slammed the door.

* * *

**AN: Sorry for not updating for a long time! I was busy with the 12 Days of Christmas story on time but after Christmas, I would probably update more frequently! :)**

**Anyway, RIP to all those who died in the Connecticut Shooting. It's kind of ironic as it happened when I'm writing this story about a shooting but it truly is something devastating to happen. I hope everybody involved in the shooting, people who are connected to anyone who died or suffer or technically everybody is alright. Also, at least the world didn't end today...or would it? ;)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	19. It Certainly Doesn't Seem Like the Last

"Leo! What were you even talking about?" Hazel asked.

Leo laughed. "You're too innocent. You don't even know half of the things happening in this neighborhood."

"Uh, yeah I do!" Hazel said indigently. "Like at the moment, Indigo's in the hospital because she had food poisoning and they are trying really hard to-"

"Really? Food poisoning?" Leo raised his eyebrows. "More like overdose of drugs."

"Drugs? Honestly Leo, you're funny." Hazel giggled but froze as she watched her friend's expression. "This…this isn't one of your jokes, is it?"

"No, Hazel." Leo said gravelly. "As I said, you don't know half of the things happening."

"But my mom said Indigo had food poisoning!" Hazel protested.

"I see, your mom trying to protect you." Leo nodded. "Typical. Hazel, your mom has been doing a pretty good job but you can't live forever under the covers."

"So you're saying people in our neighborhood do drugs, drink alcohol?"

"More than that." Leo drummed his fingers against the wall. "But I'll leave it for now. Mrs. Marshall just told us that her family has been involved with all the drugs and you do know drugs cost a fortune to get? They were probably in debt getting the drugs and did some illegal - like everybody else to get money to pay back."

"Cost a lot?" Hazel coughed. "Why would something harmful cost so much?"

"Because it's high in demand." Leo replied as if he knew it from personal experience.

* * *

Catriona laughed. "You sure you don't want a joint?"

"No thanks." Piper said. "I don't smoke."

"Come on!" Cat giggled. "It's fun. Just one joint?"

"Nah." Piper shuddered. Sure, she loved being Cat's friend but since they were friends years ago, Cat has changed a lot.

"Goody Two Shoes, Piper. I see you're still the teacher's pet."

"Teacher's pet say what?" Piper groaned. "That's Annabeth, biatch."

Cat flipped her hair. "Ooh, touchy. Seriously though, why do you hang out with those losers."

"Losers?" Piper felt defensive for her friends. "Once you get to know them, they are great!"

"To be honest, I don't even know why I hang out with Kaylee, Kerri, Brittany, Chelsea or London. They are just so, ughs."

"What do you mean?" Piper asked curiously. "Thought you guys were all bffs."

"They are just not fun anymore! I mean, all they want to do is homework and shit. I can bitch about every single one of them. Kaylee is just oh my god, she never shuts up. She thinks I should spend my whole life listening to her but honestly, I have my own life! Kerri doesn't even have a mind of her own. She goes with whatever I say. Come on, I bet she doesn't agree with half of the things she does. Brittany is a total bitch. She thinks she is oh-so-popular but really, without me she would be sitting with the losers. Chelsea tries too hard to fit in. She isn't the same as she was before. Now all she cares is about her image and reputation and don't even get me started on London." Cat sighed taking another joint on her cigarette. "I seriously had enough from that girl."

Piper sat there and listened half-heartedly to Cat's rant. If she didn't truly like her supposed best friends, does she really like her? Or does she bitch about her to other people.

"You're like one of the only people I met that's actually real. Not fake like Barbie." Cat smiled. "I like you."

"Uh, thanks." Piper muttered.

Cat looked at her intently. "You alright?"

"Yup. I'm fine." Piper answered grimly. Right, her mind reminded her. Not fake like Barbie. Totally as fake as Bratz.

* * *

"Oh my gosh…I have missed out a lot." Jason sighed.

"The world grew up, little bro." Thalia laughed. "It's not all unicorns and rainbow."

"One question, what does the Goode High Shooting have to do with Brad Marshalls?" Annabeth questioned. It's unusual for Annabeth to be asking, but when she does, normally nobody knew that answer.

"I don't know." Jason shrugged. "I just thought it might be related. I was a victim of the shooting after all and Dr. Marshall tampered with my tape."

"How do you know he tampered with it for sure?" Percy put on fake glasses and inspected Jason closely.

"Again, I don't know." He groaned. "I just heard a phone call - it's a theory. It's 80% correct, I guess."

"Percy!" Annabeth took off her boyfriend's fake glasses. "This isn't a time to dress up! It's serious."

"Okay, Wise Girl. Whatever you say." Percy smiled.

"Uh, guys! This isn't the time to get all cute and mushy and have one of those 'I love you more' wars." Nico gagged.

"We aren't even having them!" Annabeth muttered in protest.

Percy grinned. "Aren't you just jealous that you don't have a girlfriend?"

"So let's assume that Dr. Marshall knows something about the shooting." Thalia said ignoring the mini argument sprouting between Nico, Percy and Annabeth.

"Why is he hiding it?" Jason continued. "Why doesn't he tell the police or at least me about it? Or my dad?"

"I'm no einstein. Don't ask me." Frank butted in.

Leo bursted into laughters. "We weren't even asking you anything."

"You know, to avoid any eye contacts, questions or anything directed to me." Frank looked around and added. "Just in case."

"Okay, so let's ignore that." Annabeth gestured towards Frank who is seemed pretty embarrassed. "We have many questions and having no answers to any of them doesn't help our situation."

"Yeah, state the obvious." Leo rolled his eyes. "But guys, Mrs. Marshall told me that their family is involved with the whole drugs thing."

"You told us that!" Jason said interrupting his friend.

"Yeah but-"

"Now you're just bringing in a whole new topic. Okay, the Shooting, Dr. Marshall and now drugs." Percy frowned. "What is this? Are we living in an episode of Sherlock?"

* * *

"Well, you caught me." Rachel said. "Can't hide anymore."

"Honestly!" Annabeth cried. "Where were you the past few days? You just stormed out of my house and oh my god, I've been so worried!"

"What do you want from me?" Rachel asked ignoring her friend's questions. "You're keeping me captive so go ahead, tell me what you want."

Grover looked at Rachel. "Here's what I want. I want some enchiladas. I'm starving and I want a good grade for the environmental project we were working on."

"Grover, I'm sorry." Rachel breathed. "I'm not ditching you for a silly reason. You guys knew, I couldn't just show up and say hi."

"Know what?" Annabeth asked.

"Know about me. Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

"Yeah, we know that's your name. You said that like a bajillion times." Leo pretended to imitate Rachel's voice. " Hi guys, I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare! That's right, you'll have to call me Rachel Elizabeth Dare, not Rachel Dare!"

"That's not how I talk." Rachel frowned, she seemed to have returned to have original self.

"Whatever." Leo rolled his eyes.

"So Rachel, I thought you were a new student, why were you in the school - well, around when you were suppose to be in Texas."

"Boston." Rachel corrected. "I was never at Boston. No offense to anyone there, Boston isn't my type. I went there for a semester when I was 10 and I dislike that place."

"Okay, Boston. Please continue with your explanation?"

"Well, I was always here. Just not with you guys. The school is pretty big so you probably didn't notice me. My boss figured that out and helped me start new for the semester I was suppose to be a 'new student' in. He told me to befriend you guys - as I did."

"How about your old ones? Percy frowned. "Your old friends."

Rachel forced a laughter. "What old friends? I was a loner. Nobody noticed me."

"Wow, this is..awkward." Leo said.

"So who's your boss?" Annabeth asked intending to get a lot out of her supposed friend.

"I actually don't know." Rachel admitted. "He got a hold of my phone number and we communicated through phone calls. He never offered his name."

"A random guy you don't know of calls you and asks you to do him a favor, I'm guessing one that is really important and you agree. Without even knowing his name." Leo repeated. "What kind of logic is this?"

"He offered me popularity. You do not believe how many people in Goode High would want that. Befriending you guys is like a dream, also a one way ticket to fame throughout the school." Rachel replied dreamily.

Percy had a weird expression on his face which he normally does when he's confuse - which is pretty much all the time. "Then why don't you become friends with Cat? I think she might give you a better chance to become popular to us."

"The boss wants me to befriend you! Not Cat. Plus, you offer popularity in a nicer way. Cat is popular because she is mean and somehow manages to twist her beauty into making people want to be like her."

"Why did the boss wants you to become our friend?" Annabeth questioned.

"I don't know." Rachel sighed. "I'm still waiting for his instructions. At least, I was."

Grover who had been absent-mindedly eating a few pieces of grass dropped the grass and looked up. "Was? What? What did I miss out?"

"The boss has ears everywhere. He probably know about this conversation." Rachel said slowly.

"Then why does he need you to be our friend if he could just find something out himself?"

Rachel threw her arms wide open. "I don't know? Is somebody not allowed to be clueless here?"

"So what are we going to do now?" Leo asked, probably a question on everybody's mind.

Rachel closed her eyes almost painfully. "Either I'm going to get kidnapped and live my life in the Amazon Rainforest or I'll get killed."

"No." Annabeth breathed. "You are not. Come with me."

"Annabeth!" Rachel cried. "You don't know what you're doing! Keeping me is like keeping a grenade."

"It's not the first time I've done this and it certainly doesn't seem like the last."

* * *

**AN: Merry (belated) Christmas! How were your christmases and what did you get? It's like over christmas but I'm still listening to christmas songs :P**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	20. Cocaine

Leo looked at the photo frame beside his bed. The picture consist of him and his mom. He was about 7 years old in that picture and his mom looked just like the last time he saw her. He still haven't forgave himself for her death but he did know that it wasn't his fault.

He remembered the summer she passed away. Later on, he knew she was addicted to cocaine and died because of it. Before that, he thought it was a heart disease. His mom never really told him what it was so he guessed. Drugs and cocaine had always been a touchy subject for him, especially since he lost his beloved mother in it. He didn't like coming back to the world of drugs but if they are going to find out who the Shooter is, it seems like he have to.

"Mom, will you always be with me?" Leo remembered asking beside his mother's hospital bed.

"Yes, mijo." His mom nodded weakly. "I'll always be here."

Leo smiled at the word 'mijo'. It was what his mother loved calling him. Normally, he is the one giving people nicknames. He don't exactly enjoy getting them himself but he loved how his mother called him 'mijo'.

Leo knew his mother always meant to quit cocaine but it was addicting, hard to stop. She had started taking cocaine in high school, around Leo's age because of peer pressure. Everybody was taking cocaine. The most popular people in school including Aphrodite, Travis, Zeus Grace all took cocaine. It was as if you don't take it, it's social suicide.

Leo knew that feeling. After his mom died, he wandered around the streets of New York for months. He slept in sewers and dumps before the police found him and returned him to his dad. On one of those days around New York without a home, he wandered into an alley and met a bunch of teenagers. The teenagers were no older than 14 but they were smoking, drinking alcohol and taking drugs - of course cocaine.

He remembered one particular boy. After all, he is still around except he probably didn't know that the boy he met 8 years ago was Leo. Justin Fontaine.

"Kid, you want some drugs?" Justin laughed. Leo guessed now that he was high, probably wasn't aware of this.

"Drugs?" Leo made a face. He has been told ever since he was a toddler to stay away from strangers and foreign objects. He did not recognize the word.

"Duh!" Justin showed him the white crystalline powder of cocaine. "These cost me a fortune. You're lucky I'm offering it to you for free, boy."

Leo recognized the power. He saw it in his mom's drawer before. If his mom knew what it is, then it's not exactly foreign anymore. Secretly feeling honored that he going to have something like his mom's, he grasp the little pocket of white powder.

"Keep it safe!" Justin giggled, something not very common for a teenage guy. "Don't let anybody especially those nasty blue uniformed people get you!"

At that time, Leo was determined to consume these powders. However, he felt the urge to get away from the dodgy alley and these strangers so holding on to the packet firmly, he began to run away from the alley. Justin Fontaine and some of his friends were hollering things after him but Leo didn't pay attention. When he got to a desire distance away from that particular alley, Leo found out that the packet of cocaine he held so tightly somehow managed to escape from his grasp. Feeling low, he walked back to the alley to see if Justin was still there with more packets of these powders but he was gone.

* * *

Annabeth looked at her audience. "I think we should stop focusing on the shooting, drugs and Jason's doctor. It's too much."

"So what do you suggest doing?" Jason frowned. "Uhm..Dr. Marshall is treating me."

"There are seven death victims of the Shooting and the Shooter obviously wants them dead for a reason. We will pair up as doing this alone is too dangerous to find out what each person who died had to do with the Shooter." Annabeth said boldly ignoring any sudden outbursts. "Jason, tell Piper you guys are doing Silena Beaugard and Beckendorf. Grover and Nico, you guys are doing Mrs. White and Zoe Nightshade."

"Ew," Nico frowned. "We get to investigate a teacher. Yay."

"Hazel and Frank are doing Chris Rodriguez and Lee Fletcher and me and Percy would focus on Ethan Nakamura." Annabeth continued.

"Um..there's Luke." Grover piped up nervously. "I know he isn't like dead, or I don't think he is but-"

Annabeth's strong gaze wavered slightly. "I'll take him. With Percy."

"You left me." Leo reminded her. "I don't have anyone to investigate."

"You can go along with Hazel and Frank." Annabeth replied to Frank's dismay. Frank always had a crush on Hazel but lately, he has been getting a feeling that Hazel is crushing on Leo. Leo is just so easy-going and funny, Frank was afraid he could never compete with him.

* * *

"Piper." Jason called as he saw him walking down the street with Cat. They were laughing about something Cat just said. "Hey! Piper!"

"Ooh, look who's calling you." Cat winked at her friend and stopped.

Piper blushed. "Hi, Jason."

"Can I talk to you?" Jason glanced at Cat awkward. "As in private?"

"Go ahead." Cat smiled. "You're cute together."

"Actually," Piper said quite embarrassed by Cat being around. "Call me later, okay?"

"Sure." Jason grinned. "Um..I'll go now? I'll leave you guys alone."

"Don't be embarrassed, sweetie!" Cat said. "I don't bite. I'll wait here, you guys take a stroll."

"You sure?" Piper asked, looking at Cat for her permission. Jason found it weird as Piper never seeks other people's approval, most of the time she just does whatever she wants to do.

"Yeah." Cat nodded.

"Thanks, Cat." Piper hugged her friend and then turned to Jason.

* * *

"Rachel, talk to me." Annabeth muttered softly. "There's nobody here but me and Thalia. We're your best friends. You can trust us." Rachel was hidden in Annabeth's house sitting on the couch watching TV shows absent-mindedly.

"I know I could trust you." Rachel said slowly. "It's just that it's way to dangerous."

"Why don't you start by telling us your life. What you told us previously is probably fake as you never lived in Boston for 9 years." Thalia suggested. "How was your life as a child?"

"Terrible." Rachel admitted. "My father died of cancer when I was 3 and my mom remarried another guy. For the first 2 years, we were actually happy. The guy Gordon was nice to me. I liked him, we were really close but when I was 5 years old, he started hurting me physically and verbally. He changed. When I come home from primary school, he would randomly punch me and yell at me. I was so scared but he warned me not to tell anything to my mom either. I didn't so she never found out about this. When I was 13 years old, Gordon started abusing me and even raped me. I was terrified, I didn't know what to do. He's just not the same anymore. I try reasoning with him, try to get the Gordon I originally knew back but that was gone."

"Oh gods." Annabeth winced. "I'm so sorry."

Rachel kept a straight face while reaching for tissues to wipe a few tears from her eyes. "It's okay. It's just that I never told anyone this before. My mom still doesn't know, she thinks that I love him. I don't know how to break it to her, she loves him."

"Where is that fuckhead?" Thalia demanded. "I am so beating the shit out of him."

"Don't." Rachel breathed hoarsely. "Nobody is suppose to know this."

"You should have called the police." Annabeth whispered.

"I know." Rachel sobbed. "And then I started getting these phone calls from the Boss offering a better life for me. At that time, my school life wasn't exactly thrilling either. I mean, imagine yourself ignored everyday at school, having no friends to talk to. That's exactly me back then. The Boss had a wonderful vision of life ready for me only if I befriend you guys. It's almost too good to be true. I had to take it."

"Evil guys always have these 'too good to be true' thing going on, don't they." Thalia sighed. "I don't blame you, Rach."

"My life is just so screwed up I don't even know." Rachel shook her head. "Sorry, I really shouldn't be doing this to you guys. Especially when you are technically one of the victims here. I can tell you that I sincerely like you guys though. I'm not faking that, you guys are sweet, genuine and anything I could wish for as a friend."

"Yay." Thalia nodded weakly.

* * *

"Okay, Grover." Nico looked at his friend. "Have you realized that everybody else got a partner of the opposite gender and we're like the only gay ones?"

"Gay?" Grover frowned nibbling on his emptied coke can. "That's because we're the only 2 guys left and one of us isn't a girl."

"There's still Reyna and we get to investigate a teacher." Nico sighed. "I am seriously going to kill Annabeth if she isn't so threatening."

Grover winced. "Yeah, I bet she can beat you up."

"Me?" Nico scoffed. "I don't actually mean that she's threatening. I only said that because I'm a uh.. gentleman. Yeah, gentleman. I don't beat girls up. If she's a guy, I would totally beat her up! She has no chance against me."

"I won't risk that if I were you."

Evidently trying to change the subject, Nico said hastily. "Grover, do you remember when Mrs. White taught? I never got her for any of my classes. I don't think so at least."

"She was my maths teacher." Grover answered wistfully. "I remember her pretty well. How can I not? Hey wait! You got her a few years ago didn't you? We were in the same math class, I think?"

Nico shrugged. "I don't remember my teachers. Who do I even have for social studies? I just go to their class, sit down and do my own thing. Wait..do I have Mr. Wright or Mr. Reeds for social studies again?"

"You have Mr. Evans." Grover reminded him. "Anyway, I'm actually not sure why she's killed. She's one of the sweetest teachers in Goode High. Actually was, but that's according to me. A lot of people like her as well."

"That's probably why I don't remember her." Nico laughed. "If she never gave me an 'F' on my report card or anything that bad she goes straight out of my memory."

"Mrs. White would only give A's on reports." Grover smiled remembering the past. "She won't dare giving people anything lower. She'd only offer extra coaching to those who have rather low grades."

"If she was so nice, then why is she killed? I mean if there's this strict teacher who gives detentions every day to everybody I'd understand." Nico frowned.

"Exactly! This world is so twisted." Grover moaned. "The only good thing around is probably enchiladas."

* * *

Reyna twisted her hair into her usual braid. Ugh, she knows she had already lost Jason to Piper. There isn't much she - or Piper could do. Why should Jason choose her over Piper anyway? Piper's parents are Tristan and Aphrodite McLean and she is drop dead gorgeous. Anybody in the right mind would choose Piper.

Stop with the pitying yourself! Reyna scolded herself. She isn't normally like this, moping over some guy. She should be strong, a leader like Hylla.

"Reyna, you up?" Reyna's phone broadcasted Annabeth's call across the room.

"Yeah." Reyna answered.

"Everybody has a pair and they are each researching two dead victims of the Shooting each." Annabeth paused. "I need you to do something special.""Okay." Reyna nodded. She was going to ask if she is going to have a pair but decided to let Annabeth finished her task first.

"You have a solo mission. I gave Leo to Frank and Hazel as a three because he would not be good in your mission. Yours would have to be solo and you must not tell anyone, got it?"

Reyna's heart sunk. She was hoping to get somebody, maybe Jason or at least Leo as a partner but noo, Annabeth had to give him to Frank and Hazel although they are already a pair. "Got it." She muttered glumly.

"You will be investigating the death of Drew Tanaka."

Reyna's mouth fell wide open. "Drew, Drew Tanaka. You want me to investigate her death?"

"Yes." Annabeth hesitated. "I know, it's tough but somebody's got to do it."

"Fine." Reyna sighed. "I'll do it."

* * *

**AN: Happy New Years Eve guys! x hehe, what are you doing tonight? I'm counting down with my friends in a New Years party this guy in my class's hosting!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter as it'll probably be the last chapter I upload in 2012!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	21. Love is Tragic

"Did they buy your story?" He question slowly and clearly through his phone.

"Yes, boss." Rachel answered. "They did."

"Well done. Linger around there and feed me any more information you found out." The Boss said curtly.

"I will."

"Good bye." and the boss hung up.

* * *

"Silena Beaugard and Beckendorf." Piper grinned. "That's relatively simple."

"Why?" Jason asked.

"Beckendorf's death is one simple one." Piper continued, smiling for some reason. "It's so cute! I mean, his girlfriend is about to get killed and he jumps in to rescue her -sacrificing his own life."

"Right. Yeah? Tell me more." Jason urged her. It was the first time he heard the story and it's lovely hearing Piper's voice after she has been spending so much time with Cat.

"So basically after the Shooting, me and Lacy were talking." It took Jason a while to process who this 'Lacy' was but he quickly remembered that Piper mentioned a certain 'Lacy' who went to a college in Milan to be a fashion designer and decided not to ask. "Isn't it romantic having a boyfriend who love you so much he'd kill himself to save you?"

"Yeah." Jason muttered. "Very romantic." He couldn't help but think that the line was directed to him. It's not really a secret anymore that he has a small crush on Piper. The use of the word 'boyfriend' seems like even Piper thinks it's time for him to ask her out.

"I know right? Like in Titanic movie, Jack died so Rose can go to New York and well, be alive. And that's exactly what Beckendorf did! He died from love!"

"Died from love?" Jason laughed. "Woah, hold your horses." He never really believed in love himself. He never saw much power in love and honestly, how can somebody die from love? Plus, Jason thought Jack died because Rose couldn't shift her butt over offering some space to her so called lover. Or, she was really selfish and they couldn't take turns being in the freezing water. Some lover she was.

"Jason, my mom used to tell me that love and war always go together. They are the peak of human emotion! Evil and good, beauty and ugliness." (AN: I actually love Aphrodite in the story and this is one of my favorite quotes from her) Piper sighed. "She's right! The Shooting is like war, but a one-sided war. A surprise attack and there goes Beckendorf and Silena, the it couple at that time. They were so cute together, perfect, a match made in heaven. When Beckendorf saw the bullets going for the girl he loved so much, the only thing he could do was stop her from getting killed. If you remember the circumstances at that time, things were pretty rough. Beckendorf is a simple man, I know him. He's not Annabeth, he doesn't think of a complicated way to get him and Silena out of trouble. Time was short so he did the only thing he could do. He jumped in front of Silena and save her life."

"Uh," Jason piped up awkwardly in the middle of Piper's long speech. He supposed it was a romantic one but again, he's not that type of person. "You do realize Silena dies-"

"Sh…" Piper waved her hands to silence him. "You're ruining the moment here."

"Oh okay."

There was a moment of silence in between us and Jason guessed that Piper was close to Beckendorf and Silena so he decided to let the moment slide. If his best friends died from something as tragic as the Shooting and if he could remember it, he'll definitely want a few minutes to himself to have a mini tribute to them in his mind.

"So anyway," Piper finally glanced at him. "Where were we again?"

"Um..I was reminding you that Silena also-"

"Now that is where their romance met it's twisted, tragic fate!" Piper announced loudly covering Jason's voice. "All of the greatest romances eventually do, but that's what makes them flawless! Have you read the story about the Trojan War? Probably more than 2000 years ago? It used to be my favorite bedtime story and my mom loved telling me it before I sleep. My mom is a huge fan of these stories and I have to say, I kind of am as well. So long story short, this prince of Troy named Paris and this woman Helen was in love. The problem was Helen is already married, against her will to the king of Sparta, King Menelaus."

Piper froze. "Okay, that sounds wrong. Since my dad was in that king of Sparta movie and stuff but trust me, it's uh another king."

"Yeah?" Jason prompted her. He thought the story sounded familiar, maybe Piper told him before but he liked how Piper is telling it.

"Besides, Helen is the most beautiful woman in the world. King Menelaus won't lose her for anything. So, Paris smuggled Helen back to Troy. Of course his dad got mad at everything but once he saw the beauty of Helen, he decided to let her stay. She was gorgeous, stunning, such a prized possession." Piper continued. "When King Menelaus realized that his beloved wife was gone, he rounded up all the kings in Greece to fight Troy. I mean, there's another story behind this which explained why the kings decided all to help him fight Troy but it's too long. Let's just pretend they were nice people, that story's not even important enough because I can illustrate my point without it."

"Okay." Jason looked uncertainly.

"Troy was a hard place to fight. They had these great walls built around the city, rumored to be built by only the gods. After 10 years of war, Greece and Troy were still fighting. One day Greece might be winning but the other, Troy would be. Both sides had lost plenty of their best warriors. Then of course, the classic story of where Odysseus placed the wooden horse outside of Troy's gates actually filled with greek soldiers inside comes in and the Trojans bought it into the city thinking it'll stop the greeks from returning to Greece. Troy was destroyed during the night and Helen went back to Sparta after Paris is killed."** (AN: I know some people might say Helen was forced to go with Paris but I don't think that would be what Aphrodite would tell her daughters.)** Piper paused. "Paris risked the war and everything just for their love."

Jason frowned. What kind of a bedtime story is this? The ending isn't particularly happy if you're not a fan of the greeks which he is pretty sure Piper isn't. However, this wasn't his only question. He had millions of them swarming in his mind. "Isn't there another guy, Achilles or something in the war?" Jason decided to ask.

Piper rolled her eyes. "Yeah! But he's really not that important. I mean, he is, okay? Without him, the war won't have been won but he kinda plays no parts in the love story so we tend to skip by him. The point of this story is love is tragic. Paris had to put everything in stakes for his love. Jack had to die because he loved Rose. History repeats itself. Beckendorf is the 21st century Paris, or Jack."

Isn't the Trojan War a myth and the whole Jack and Rose situation a movie that never really happened? Jason shrugged. Sometimes, Piper have to slow down so he could keep in pace with whatever's going on in her mind.

"You seem pretty lost there." Piper said, smiling at her friend. "Here's another example. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Another one of my favorite bedtime stories."

Jason winced. He knew this story, who doesn't? And something is seriously wrong with Aphrodite for even allowing these stories to be told by bedtime.

"You're probably really familiar with the story so I'm just going to skip to the main point. Romeo and Juliet practically died to be together. This is how much they love each other! It's the power of love! Love can make people do crazy things."

Okay, Jason was pretty sure Romeo and Juliet is fiction but decided not to say anything. Sure, he loved hearing Piper talk but he does not need any other examples of a love story. What is Piper going to pull in next? A medieval couple? Somebody from the Notebook or some other chick flick movies? "Got it! So ah, the power of love, wow." He found himself rambling but stopped. What is he talking about? The power of love? Bullshit, he never believed in it himself.

Jason never had much faith as other people. He isn't the type who could just believe in something without evidence. He needs hard-core facts to proof something. Love is something that doesn't provide these facts to believe it. It's abstract and he found it hard.

Piper looked at him and murmured softly. "Sorry, was that too much? I tend to get overboard about things like love."

"No, it's alright!" Jason had a feeling where he knew he couldn't let Piper be sad.

"If it's alright, can I ask you a question."

He had a bad feeling of this but at the same time, he wanted to please her. "Sure, shoot away."

"Do you believe in love?" Piper asked.

"No," Jason admitted truthfully. "I'm sorry, I know you do. I just…don't. I need to be in somebody like Beckendorf's footsteps and actually experience it first."

"I understand." Piper smiled sympathetically. "but I hope you'll know love one day. I have a feeling it's going to play a huge part in your life."

* * *

"It's 2013 bitches!" Leo yelled running around the mall.

"Yeah, it's been 2013 for like a week." A stranger walked past him and muttered.

"I don't know who that boy is." Hazel chanted, wincing at the attention Leo was attracting.

Frank nudged her. "Let's go."

"But we can't exactly..leave him." Hazel protested.

"True." Frank nodded grimly. "But I don't want to appear to know who he is either."

"Yo! Check out this hot stuff." Leo grinned at some girls who walked passed gesturing at himself. "Single and ready to go to the Valentines Day dance with one of you."

"Piss off." One of the girls laughed as the others looked at her as if saying 'seriously?' and walked away.

"Leo," Hazel hissed. "We're suppose to be finding information about Lee Fletcher and he works at the music store on the 2nd floor before he died. We are suppose to be going up to the store now to ask the boss casual questions. We don't do whatever you doing."

"Sorry, Haz." Leo shrugged. "It's the mall."

"Now that's the reason why we don't bring Leo to malls." Frank muttered. "I get why we never bring him to malls now."

"Okay guys!" Leo ran back to his friends as everybody stared at him. "I'm done embarrassing you guys!"

"Oh god why." Frank covered his face with his large hands and inched away.

"So let's head on with the task." Leo cheered.

* * *

"So do you want to look at Ethan or Luke first?" Percy asked eating another slice of pizza. "Personally I think we should go with Luke. He's probably easier since you have some uh..connections with him." He couldn't help the level of jealousy which rose when he mentioned Luke.

Percy remembered that time before the shooting, everybody had a crush on Luke, including Annabeth and he suspects she still has feeling for Luke. Luke was the hottest, most popular guy in school and of course, he was single. He was also pretty close to Annabeth which made many girls jealous but truthfully, Percy couldn't see how they could have been dating. Luke was a senior and they were only freshmen. There was a 3 year difference between them but he still didn't like how she flirted with him previously.

"Um..what connections?" Annabeth asked innocently.

Percy laughed trying not to sound bitter. "You, Luke, what connections? You guys are like best friend! Nobody is closer than you guys!"

"No." Annabeth murmured softly. "There was someone else closer."

"Who?" Percy asked. "I'm pretty sure-"

"Jason's older sister, Thalia Grace." Annabeth replied coldly.

* * *

"Dad?" Jason looked at his dad who is looking through some documents. "Did you know Silena Beaugard or Charles Beckendorf?"

Zeus Grace gave a hearty laugh. "Weren't they your friends before they died? You'd probably know them better than I do but yeah, I know them. I know their parents better if it helps."

"I'm just trying to get to know them better." Jason realized how awkward it sounded, asking his parent about his own friends. "You know, trying to get a better glimpse of what I don't remember."

"Well, you were always complaining about how they were such a couple and you are going to gag if argue who loves who better." Zeus chuckled. "When they came over for a party your sister hosted you guys were yelling at them to get a room."

"DAD! You were not suppose to be sneaking around during the party!" Thalia yelled as she came down the stairs.

"I'm sorry but it's interesting to see what you teens call a party now. I remember the good old days when I-"

"Shut up." Thalia grumbled. "Jason, if you want to know more about your old classmates you don't ask a parent. You're pathetic."

"Son, you wanted to know more about Silena didn't you?" Zeus had the familiar glint in his eye where he often does when he disapprove something. "Well she is a-"

"Dad, enough." Thalia interrupted. "He doesn't need to learn about Silena and Beckendorf off you."

"Can somebody just tell me what's going on?" Jason asked timidly. Honestly, he'd never get anything by how the amount of times they argue.

"If you want to know the truth about them, come with me." Thalia dragged her brother off to her room.

"Hey! I have the truth! Thalia, you tell lies!" Zeus protested but was ignored but his daughter as Jason was pulled inside her room helplessly.

"Dad thinks that Silena is a slut." Thalia's eyes gleamed dangerously as if she dared Jason to disagree.

"Okay." Jason nodded. "Why?"

"Because she was really pretty. Seriously, she could be in the same league as Megan Fox. A lot of guys like her."

"That's not the definition of a slut." Jason frowned. "That's being popular."

"Exactly!" Thalia agreed angrily. "And she was faithful to Beckendorf! They loved each other!"

"I can tell that." Jason smiled. "Piper told me the same thing."

Thalia glanced at her brother and a sly smile slowly crept onto her face. "Piper, ooh! Did you ask her out already? Did she give you that huge lecture about love Sil use to give us? I swear, it's like a thing they have."

"Uh, no? but yeah for the lecture. It's not exactly about love but we were talking about Silena and Beckendorf when she gave me all these examples to do with the Trojan War, Titanic and stuff which all led to love."

Thalia laughed. "The Trojan War. Classic. Why were you even talking about them?"

Jason felt like he shouldn't be telling her about finding the shooter as it should be Annabeth's job but she is really close to her and he couldn't stand Thalia's electric blue stare. "Annabeth. She told me and Piper to find more about the deaths of Silena and Beckendorf." He whispered. "We want to find the shooter."

Thalia frowned. "That girl has some explaining to do to her best friend."

* * *

**AN: First chapter of 2013! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Ugh, school starts on January 7th but I'll try to update as soon as possible!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	22. He's different

"Annabeth, tell me what's going on." Thalia demanded beside her locker.

"Nothing." Annabeth said. "What could possibly be going on?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe you guys are doing some investigation tasks without me." Thalia rolled her eyes.

Annabeth froze. "Who told you that."

"Just nobody." Thalia smiled, she knew if she let Jason's name slip he would be done. "You guys weren't exactly quiet."

"How much do you know." Annabeth whispered hoarsely.

"Am I not suppose to know?" Thalia smirked. "Come on Annie, tell me! I'm your fucking best friend!"

"Don't call me that." Annabeth growled. "I can't, Thals."

"Why not?" Thalia whined.

"I know you too well." Annabeth sighed. "You know where Luke is don't you? You would tell him about this, wouldn't you?"

"Luke?" Thalia frowned. "I don't - it's you who knows where he is. Come on! He hid in your house, you're the only person who know he existed at that time!"

"I know! It's something about you, your expression that tells me everything I need to know." Annabeth insisted. "I know you too well."

"You're the only one who knows where he is." Thalia accused.

"No, I don't!" Annabeth defended herself. "You do. I know you do."

"Fine!" Thalia snapped. "I do, so what?"

"I knew it!" Annabeth grinned triumphantly. "But why? He cheated on you!"

"That's nothing you need to know about." She said sourly.

Annabeth pursed her lips. "Okay, I'll do a deal with you. I'll tell you what's going on if you tell me about Luke and you."

"Luke and me?" Thalia laughed. "Deal, you go first."

"It's nothing much. We're just trying to find out who the Shooter is and we're starting on finding more about each person who died in the Shooting. I gave each pair - except for Frank, Hazel and Leo who are a three - two dead victims to investigate. I don't know how they're doing yet. We think there might be a lot more involved such as drugs and Jason's doctor Dr. Marshall which you are probably familiar with but I want to start simple."

"Good." Thalia nodded and narrowed her eyes. "Go on, there's more to this isn't there?"

Annabeth frowned. "I hate it when you know me so well but you can't tell this to anyone. Promise?"

"Promises are hard to keep but I'll try to."

"I gave Reyna a special task, she is to find out Drew's death. It's a solo task." Annabeth told her friend rather reluctantly.

"Drew." Thalia mused. "Our little bitchy gossip queen. Reyna will do fine."

"I hope she will." Annabeth answered worriedly. "Now your story?"

"Luke's in San Francisco." Thalia answered shortly.

"Why? Tell me more, I want every single bit of the story. Since well, wherever you think it's good to start for me to grasp the whole image."

"Okay." Thalia's electric blue eyes gaze into Annabeth's stormy grey ones. "I'll tell you everything if you don't repeat it to a single soul until I reveal it."

Annabeth nodded under her friend's gaze as Thalia started. "You know how Luke and I dated back when we were sophomores and you guys were on your last year of middle school?"

"Yup, you guys broke up during that summer." Annabeth prompted.

"Yeah. We were secretly dating on our junior year. Nobody knew, not even Jason. We didn't want to tell anyone because the result is too unpredictable. Everybody had a crush on Luke at that time, even you. We don't know what they'll do to us if they realize we're still dating. After the Shooting, I was devastated since I thought Luke died. I could really see how lives together, he is one guy I would want to spend my life with."

"Aww." Annabeth's grey eyes soften as she patted her friend's shoulders. "But seriously, that is not you. You're all 'omg, I hate guys!' and now you're telling me you want to spend your life with Luke."

"He's different!" Thalia said quickly. "I don't like other boys but Luke is really special. A month later when I was watching episodes of Survivors, I got a text message telling me to go to the forest next to the cemetery. I didn't recognize the number but I went anyway. I don't know, I had a feeling like my fate depends on whether I go there or not. I saw Luke over there, he was fine. Not a scratch nothing. I was glad. He told me the shooter was after him and he fled. I asked him to go back to school but he told me it wasn't safe for him so he went to San Francisco."

"Did you believe him? I don't believe you'll let him go so easily to San Francisco."

Thalia gaze into space wistfully. "Yeah, I did. His startling baby blue eyes, they were irresistible. I couldn't, I couldn't say no. Annie, he told me he was in danger. I couldn't let anything bad happen to him. San Francisco is so far away, it might be safe for him. Safer than New York anyway."

Annabeth wanted to scold her friend for calling her 'Annie' but she knew it wasn't the time for it. "Why did he come back to New York then?"

"Documents. He left some really important documents."

"And why would he want to reside at my house? Yours is bigger, nicer and for heaven sake it's an Upper East High apartment." Annabeth cried. "Mines is a normal, pretty average house in the suburbs."

"Exactly!" Thalia threw her arms wide open. "It's average. Nobody would search there. Plus Jason would find out that we have an extra guest at our house and tell the world. I told him to go to your house."

"Thals!" Annabeth couldn't stop a giggle from sliding. "I had to tell my dad we did an unexpected student exchange program with a school in New Zealand and Luke is from this really infamous school there. It's a good thing he couldn't remember things really well to realize it's Luke."

* * *

"How's it going with your new girlfriend?" Reyna asked icily.

Jason frowned. "What girlfriend?"

"Piper."

He flushed. "Oh uh..she's not my girlfriend!"

"Really?" Reyna raised her eyebrow. "Don't deny that you at least like her."

Jason blushed. "I-I do."

"Whatever." Reyna sighed. "You boys are so oblivious."

"Oblivious to what?" Jason cried indigently. "Tell me."

"Never mind." Reyna forced a fake smile on. "Why aren't you calling Piper? Or texting her? Or at least spending time with her?"

"She's with Cat." Jason pointed out. "I think they're going to some movie premiers or something."

"Oh and she didn't ask you to go with her?" Reyna mocked.

"No-well, she did but I didn't exactly want to go there." Jason paused.

"Not wanting to spend time with your girlfriend, what kind of boyfriend are you?"

"I'm not even her boyfriend, Reyna what's up with you?" Jason snapped. "Look, why are you so dense?"

"Sorry." Reyna rubbed her eyes. "I'm just tired I guess."

Jason studied his friend's expression. "Oh my god! You aren't..jealous are you?"

"Jealous?" Reyna laughed. "Pfft..jealous of what?"

"Me and Piper!" Jason smiled. "Come on, Rey. I'm not romantically linked with her."

"I'm not jealous!" Reyna insisted. "We have like a brother and sister relationship. Why would I ever want to date you? Ew! Just shut up! Shut up! Okay? You aren't exactly boyfriend material."

"Whatever you say." Jason grinned.

* * *

"Hey Reyna!" Reyna looked over her shoulder to find Catriona behind her.

"Um..hi?" Reyna said awkwardly, she never talked to Cat before and never dreamt of starting to.

Cat gave a small smile, "How are you today?"

"Fine." Reyna shrugged. "Other than the fact I got a load of homework."

"Cool." Cat's gaze was far-away as if she wasn't even paying attention as they walked outside of the school doors . "Hey, do you think we can talk later? My brother Justin's here."

"Sure." As Reyna walked out of the school doors, she found a fancy Porsche convertible waiting right outside. A boy just out of his teenaged years but clearly not fully matured yet was sitting impatiently on the drivers seat. He had a wild and dangerous glint in his eyes that girls go crazy for and well-toned stomach. He captured everyone walking out of school's attention but he didn't care.

"Get in, bitch! I don't have all day waiting for you." Justin called loudly cranking his music higher while drumming his fingers on the wheels as if he's itching to drive off without Cat. "Why did you even give mom the idea of me driving you home?"

Cat got into the Porsche and grumbled. "It's not like I'm super thrilled of this idea either. Your car stinks of sex. How many girls did you fuck in this crap?"

"Enough." Justin answered with a laugh as he drove out of Reyna's earshot. Reyna narrowed her eyes at the speeding vehicle as a memory clouded her mind.

"Have fun in middle school!" Ms. Jennings kissed her daughter on the forehead affectionately as Reyna squirmed under her mom's fondness. It was the first day of middle school and her mom obviously didn't realize how embarrassing it is displaying public affection between family members in the hallways. Luckily, nobody really saw her.

"Thanks, mom." Reyna nodded and hastily looked at her watch. "I have to go now." She lied, knowing that there's plenty of time until registration begins.

"Look at my little girl! Already in middle school!" Mrs. White sighed. "I swear, time goes faster as you grow older."

"And slower when you're in such an embarrassing situation." Reyna muttered under her breath.

Mrs. White gaze at her daughter who's beginning to walk away from her and quickly whispered. "Oh, and Reyna? Don't you even dare talking to anybody from the Fontaine family. I think they have two kids now, Justin and one about your age - Catriona. They are trouble with a capital T."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Reyna rolled her eyes. She has heard all about Justin and Cat Fontaine from her friends. They were one of the most popular kids in the neighborhood, alongside Ashley Taylor and Piper McLean. Only, Justin was famous because of his bad-boy attitude. Reyna didn't know if Cat is like her brother or not but she has certainly got her popularity off him. Reyna is surprised that her mom haven't mentioned them until now. Usually when somebody like Justin are around, her mom lectures her thousands of times why not to be like them etc.

She haven't talked to Cat or Justin until today, when she broke it. Normally, she felt the urge to never talk to Cat again as she didn't like disobey orders but thinking of the amount of people who would die to even catch Cat's attention, she felt somewhat lucky. Before today, she didn't care about her popularity as it was extremely low priority than studying to get to a good college. However, she felt more self-conscious about herself after her brief conversation with Cat. Was it something about her that made the most untouchable girl in Goode High to say hi to her?

Reyna liked it. She liked feeling special and wanted, especially by somebody like Cat. Sure, she already have one of the most popular girls in the neighborhood Piper as her friend (although she isn't sure what their relationship is at the moment since she felt resentment since she stole Jason but still, they hang out with the same group of friends). Having Cat as one of her best friends would improve her status around school.

Woah Reyna, she scolded herself. Cat only said 'hi', she probably only wanted to get to know Piper's friends better since their fallout years ago. Don't fantasize the whole best friends idea, there's only a slim chance it's going to happen!

* * *

**AN: New Chapter up! and yup! I've changed my pen-name again since 'aphrodite-cabin' isn't exactly a well, proper pen-name I guess. As you notice that it's now 'Beauty Queen Piper' :)**

**Lately, I've been reading a lot of one-shot fics and I really want to write another one..which pairings do you think I should write about? **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	23. Faking Friends

**"You still don't remember?" Hazel stared intently at Leo. "You honestly don't?"**

* * *

"Remind why we even thought Lee Fletcher's boss would give us valuable information on him?" Hazel groaned. "Hardworking, nice and friendly doesn't help our investigation."

"Leo wanted to go to the mall, that's why." Frank sighed. "Why did we let him persuade us to do such stupid things?"

"I think I left my uh..toolbox! Right, toolbox in the music shop! Let's go back to the mall to get it!" Leo clasped his hands together in excitement.

"Actually, my mom wants me to run errands for her." Hazel said quickly. "You know, she uh..still owns the shop."

"Didn't you guys found that huge diamond in your backyard and she stopped working because she got enough money for her lifetime? In fact, those treasures you found in your backyard can earn you and many of your generations tons of money." Leo frowned.

"Um..yeah." Hazel shifted nervously, her excuse obviously didn't work. "But she just re-opened it. Yay."

"Why didn't you tell me that?" Leo pressed on. "God, I would have came with balloons, flowers and everything for the opening!"

"Exactly." Hazel muttered weakly looking at Frank for help.

"It's a family thing." Frank offered. "I can't either. My dad wants to um train me. Yeah! Boxing!" He pumped his arm towards the air weakly.

"I thought he gave up on you?" Leo raised his eyebrows. "Remember? That huge argument on why Clarisse, your sister is better at boxing and stronger than you? Man, if I were you I'd be embarrassed."

Frank looked pretty flushed. "He um..decided to take me up again. He couldn't bear having a family member who doesn't know how to fight."

Leo laughed. Frank's dad is Ares, the famous boxer and everybody knew if Ares gives up on something, that thing is done. "So you guys are making up these lame excuses so you don't have to go to the mall with me?"

Hazel glanced and Frank and immediately cried. "No! No, no, no!"

"We're just-" Frank started. "Er…"

"Embarrassed by me?" Leo guessed. "Hate me? Think that I'm ruining your couples party?"

"What couples party?" Hazel frowned.

"Does everybody but you guys realize you guys are like-"

Frank stared at Leo anxiously. "Like what?"

"Couples!" Leo threw his arms wide open. "You guys like each other! Oh my god. So am I getting into your way too much? Would you like some alone-couple time?"

"No! We're just embarrassed by you." Hazel told him. "Nobody goes to the mall acting completely crazy. It's not an episode of Leo goes wild!"

"Leo goes wild." Leo repeated, a smile gradually appeared on his lips. "I like that."

"No! We're not giving you any ideas!" Frank hollered.

"Sure." Leo smirked. "If you guys go on a date."

"You still don't remember?" Hazel stared intently at Leo. "You honestly don't?"

"Remember what?" He frowned.

Hazel looked at Frank again, this time rather sorrowfully. "Whatever. Never mind."

* * *

Reyna threw her bed sheet out of her bed as soon as she got home. She stopped herself from dreaming about going to parties and malls with Cat and Piper allowing her old frustration to crawl back. Damn. Why can Jason read her so well? Denying that she liked him as a brother is stupid, Jason knows her too well. Fuck that.

"Reyna? You alright?" Her mom called from downstairs.

"Yeah." Reyna grunted impatiently. It's not her mom's fault or anything but she is just feeling frustrated. She knew her mom was only worried about her but at the same time, she couldn't help the anger burning inside her for even asking if she's alright. Why couldn't her mom leave her alone?

Her old jealousy for Piper came back. Won't it be nice to have a superstar dad who can get you into celebrity parties, movie premiers and isn't only interested on whether you have an A or not? Won't it be nice having a socialite, drop dead gorgeous mom who only gets mad at you if you wore the wrong outfit?

Reyna sighed. She better start her investigation on Drew before she starts getting jealous of her other friends such as Hazel and Jason.

Not knowing where to start, she went on Google and typed in 'Drew Tanaka' as if she's a famous celebrity with a whole wikipedia biography after her. Not a single article on her, only Drew's Facebook page. Why couldn't Annabeth ask her to stalk somebody like Selena Gomez? There's millions of pages on her all across the internet.

Reyna was never particularly close to Drew, she doesn't even know her as an enemy like how Piper does. She has no connections with her. Maybe that's exactly why Annabeth asked her to investigate Drew's death but it didn't make sense to her.

Reyna decided to check Drew's Facebook page. Reyna doesn't normally go on the page as it's full of drama and gossip and she isn't interested in any of them. In fact, she is even surprise to find Drew on her friend list as she makes sure everyone on her list knows her pretty well, which is why she only has limited people on her friend list while people like Drew have thousands.

**Tyler Carton:**

'Dumb bitch, you deserve to die.'

**Leah Brown:**

'I know Drew's a total whore but does she really deserve all these hate even when she's dead?'

**Cailey Psyla:**

'I'm glad you're dead, you are faker than barbies. xoxo'

Reyna isn't usually top on everybody's business, in fact she is often the last person to know new gossips but she knew that since Drew came back from California, nobody really liked her. She has been bullied and hated, a dramatic change from ex-Queen Bee.

Surprisingly, as Reyna scrolled down Drew's Facebook page she found several posts about her from friends that genuinely seem to like her, there's even a boyfriend who seemed to be very in love with her. The activities of her friends and boyfriend stopped since Drew died but they all seem to be very protective of her. Oh well, they might still be mourning about Drew's death, Reyna thought. Why would Drew's friends/boyfriend post something on her wall when she's not going to see it? Reyna sighed, some people are weird. If her friends died, she'll at least post a 'RIP' on their wall even if they're dead.

**Natalia Reynolds:**

Don't listen to those liars, hon! You're amazing! :*

**Matthew Todds:**

Drew darling, I miss you so much! Come back to Cali!

**Helen Samuels:**

Oh my god! I saw two best friends in the beach today and it totally reminded me of us!

One thing, they all seem to be from California. Curiously, she clicked into every one of them. None of the profiles offered a lot of informations, just super generic things like their gender and birthday. They had no interest, hobbies or anything. Reyna also noticed that they all had flawless, pretty appearances that she had a feeling she seen before.

Staring into the photos, she decided to demonstrate the google reverse search on her boyfriend Matthew as he looked super familiar.

**Tom Crowe, model.**

Tom? Reyna frowned, isn't it Matthew? She has a feeling she was hitting a breakthrough like how Sherlock Holmes probably felt when he solved a case. As her heart beat faster, she did the reverse search on Helen and Natalia.

**Natasia Wolfe, model.**

**Ingrid Keller, model.**

Reyna shook her head and laugh softly. Who would be so vain and pretend to have all these models as their friend except for Drew? With her shrewd mind, she found out what Drew's plan has been. Or at least, she thought she had.

* * *

"Give up, Hazel." Frank convinced his friend as Leo left insisting them to have some 'couple time' together. "He's never going to get it."

"How can he not?" Hazel stomped her foot angrily on the ground. "Is this some cruel joke everybody's playing? It's like everybody pretended it didn't exist! I know I dated Leo, it's Leo!"

"Maybe he just doesn't want to talk about it." Frank suggested. "Boys can sometimes be as complicated as you girls."

"That's not Leo!" Hazel insisted. "I know him! We were dating when we're 13. How can he not get a clue? I don't know Frank, but you're wrong. Nothing can get worse than what I'm facing now, you just don't know."

"If you guys were dating when you're 13, you must have broke up somehow so technically you're free to date anyone you want. It's not like you guys are still together." Frank told her. "Who do you want to date?"

"There's somebody." Hazel sighed. "But I'm still not sure about Leo! Frank, you won't get it."

"I will, tell me." Frank muttered softly.

"No! I can't! See? You don't get it! I can tell anybody but you or Leo." Hazel insisted.

* * *

"Thals, does Luke know that I know about him?" Annabeth hissed.

"No, he doesn't and if you dare to find him or anything, your head would be on my chopping board." Thalia warned. "Nobody is suppose to know."

"God, it can't be that bad!" Annabeth chided her. "Calm down!"

"You don't know anything, you don't know what's going on." Thalia snarled. "Don't tell me to calm down."

"Don't know anything?" Annabeth growled. "You said you'll tell me everything."

"I did! You just don't get the whole picture. Use your brain!"

"You tell me what?" Annabeth's mouth dropped open. Use your brain? Annabeth repeated her friend's harsh voice inside her head. Not once in her life somebody told her to 'use your brain', Annabeth is smart and she's proud of it. She does not need anybody to tell her to use her brain.

"Use your brain, dumbass!" Thalia roared.

Annabeth narrowed her stormy grey eyes. "You know what? I will use my brain and my brain tells you to get lost."

* * *

"Fuck this." Nico moaned gloomily. "We're never going to get anything about Mrs. White."

"I know!" Grover nibbled on his enchiladas which he always seem to bring along. "I am not going back inside with that crazy mom of Mrs. White's."

Both boys just got out of Mrs. White's house fed up. Earlier in the morning, they decided it'll be perfect to go ask the teacher's family members about her. Nico managed to swipe the teacher's address off his dad's address book which seem to have everybody's contacts in it.

"Hello, how may I help you?" Roger White smiled at Nico and Grover almost immediately after they rung the doorbell.

"Oh sorry, are we interrupting something here?" Grover squeaked politely.

"No, it's alright." Mr. White shook his head. "I just have a few friends back there of my wife's. You see, she died several years ago and they never got over it."

"I'm sorry for your loss sir." Nico nodded solemnly. "I can see why they never got over her. She must have been a lovely person."

Grover stared at Nico. He was never this charming but he seems to know how to manipulate adults very well into doing what he pleased.

"Yes, she was!" Roger White beamed with new interest at this teenager. "Come in!"

"We're former classmates of your wife, sir." Nico glanced at Grover quickly silently demanding him to go along. "She was such an outstanding teacher and made our lessons great! I had an awesome time in English with her!"

"Maths!" Grover corrected. "Maths was heaven with her around. She actually made it fun!"

"Right." Mr. White glanced at the two kids and offered some lemonade as they sat down. "I'm afraid you can't stay long but please enjoy these lemonade."

"Roger, why on earth did you invite teenagers to the house?" A voice complained loudly. "You know, they are annoying shitholes!"

"Mom, language!" Roger White called grimly. "I'm sorry but yeah, she's around and she's really fussy."

"Let me go kick their asses out of this house." The voice muttered roughly as it drew closer to them.

Nico looked at Mr. White apologetically. "Should I go now? Your mom doesn't seem very happy that we're around."

"It's Sydney's mom." Mr. White sighed. "Mrs. White's mom to you guys."

Suddenly, a woman in her late 60's came from the corridor holding an umbrella pointing towards Nico and Grover offensively. "You better get along or I'll hit this thing on your head." She threatened. "I've got enough with teenagers."

"Mom, you have a theory that the person who shot Sydney might be a teenager doesn't mean it's real! Even if it is, it doesn't mean you have to go threaten every teenager you see! These are a couple of nice kids from her class!" Roger White reasoned.

"Yeah right!" She scoffed. "Get the hell out of here, you've caused enough trouble."

"I think it's best if we go." Grover whimpered at the tapping umbrella.

"Sorry Mr. White, I think we should stop bothering you." Nico smiled as he grabbed his friend's hand and bolted straight out.

* * *

**Oooh, Thalia and Annabeth aren't getting along as well as they should be. I know there's still like a month till Valentine Day but who's going to spend Valentine Day alone? Me! Ugh, my friend is dragging me to the dance/party she's hosting at her house and pretty much everybody got a date except for me. **

**Okay, I should really stop talking about my own problems so feel free to talk about yourself! PM me!**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	24. Dear Nico,

**"Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead." ~ Benjamin Franklin**

* * *

"Reports please." Annabeth demanded. "Did any of you find out anything about the people we assigned you to?"

"Nope." Leo shook his head. "Because these two idiots won't go to the mall again."

"Woah, you took Leo to the mall?" Percy laughed disbelievingly.

Frank looked at his friends and muttered. "Exactly, we are not bringing him again."

"And we didn't even find anything good. I'm not risking going back there." Hazel said.

"We didn't get much luck either." Grover announced. "We decided to go inside Mrs. White's husband's house to maybe interrogate him in a non-suspicious way but Mrs. White's mother was there are she is like really against teenagers. When she found out that there were teenagers in the house, she threatened to hit us with an umbrella if we don't go out."

"Harsh." Jason commented.

"I know." Nico sighed. "Even with all the charms and stuff my dad taught me, we got kicked out."

"Where's Reyna?" Piper wondered out loud. She wasn't usually the one curious of her friend's whereabouts, in fact she enjoyed times without her as she is the only one chasing after Jason but she couldn't help but wonder.

"Projects." Annabeth answered a bit too quickly. "Nothing much, she just couldn't come today."

"Who is she investigating on anyway? And who's her partner?" Frank asked as if he's more than eager to get rid of Leo.

Annabeth hesitated for a second and replied hastily. "Nobody, I'm waiting for her to join us first. So, Jason and Piper, what have you guys got?"

"We didn't exactly came up with anything." Jason started. "But Piper came up with a theory or technically figured out why Beckendorf died. We're still working on Silena."

"And?"

"We realized that Beckendorf died because of love." Jason said seriously.

Percy put his palm against Jason's forehead and laughed. "Are you sick or something, bro? Love?"

"Yeah, love." Piper smiled backing up her crush. "Beckendorf didn't have to die but he blocked Silena from the bullet because he loved her. He'd die for her."

"I thought he went crazy when he did that." Leo cracked up. "I thought he went mental."

"Mental? No! I bet he was perfectly sane." Piper sighed. "Love is beautiful."

"and dangerous!" Grover sounded alarm. "He died, that's pretty big isn't it?"

"They can be in heaven together!" Piper argued. "That's so romantic!"

"We are so not having this argument." Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"Beckendorf died a hero death. I'm not giving up until they agree with me." Piper insisted.

"We agree with you Pipes, don't we?" Hazel looked around pleading her friends to agree. She didn't like arguments and this dispute didn't please her.

"Yes, we do." They muttered. Neither Piper nor Hazel was sure that they're sincere or not but it's good enough for now.

Annabeth nodded. "Jason and Piper, good job but find out about Silena."

"Reports from you and Percy?" Grover demanded.

"Oh uh..we got nothing." Annabeth muttered.

"We don't?" Percy frowned. "I thought you got something. You know, you are like the 21st century Einstein, you got to have figured out something."

"No?" Annabeth punched her boyfriend's arm. "We don't!"

"Oh really? Uh..I guess we don't then."

* * *

"What's wrong?" Hylla sighed. "I didn't come all the way from Harvard to see you ignoring me."

"Nothing!" Reyna insisted. "I didn't even ask you to come. You came because you wanted to feel the thrills of New York and get away from studying for a week."

"True." Hylla nodded. "What's up with you? You're so distant!"

Reyna glared at her sister. "I'm not, okay? Now leave me alone!"

"Sometimes, it's best if you tell somebody." Hylla said gently. "I took Psychology 101, I should know. Tell me your secrets, your darkest fears."

"You took psychology, well done." Reyna rolled her eyes. "So? It doesn't mean you can fully understand people's emotion? Even if you do, I frankly don't care. I'm not telling you anything. It's called a secret because only one person knows about it and that's me."

Hylla studied her sister carefully. "I won't tell."

Reyna met her sister's gaze and quoted Benjamin Franklin. "Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead."

"I'm your sister, god!" Hylla shook her head. "Fine, don't tell me. I'm going to meet some friends now. Tell me later or whatever."

"I've learnt my lesson from telling secrets." Reyna murmured softly as her sister got up.

* * *

"So how's Drew?" Annabeth whispered lowly.

"Oh, you mean the research?" Reyna frowned.

Annabeth seemed pretty distracted. "Yeah, that. Of course, she's not alive anymore."

"I found out she's been faking all these friends on Facebook. Like she has this supposed boyfriend and all these friends back in California but they are really fake accounts and phony people Drew probably created." Reyna told her.

"Oh really?" Annabeth laughed. "Does anyone else know?"

Reyna hesitated. People in Goode High are normally very curious, if you have a boyfriend even if they're all the way in Australia, they would get a plane ticket to stalk them if they can. If they can't get tickets, swimming will be one of the option. It's not their nature to not even stalk Drew's boyfriend on Facebook or perform the google research to find out they're fake especially when it's Drew. If they realize Drew's friends are false, that would be a scandal almost as big as when they found out this senior named Claire got pregnant a few years ago. "Oddily enough, no."

"Drew's good." Annabeth smiled. "She makes a great friend and enemy too. She can keep secrets really well but if she doesn't like you, even people in China will know your secrets."

"Wow." Reyna breathed. "You know her pretty well, don't you?"

Annabeth shrugged. "I guess. All you have to do is to be one step ahead of her game. That's how she feared and also admired others. She only worried about people who are similar to her. A lot of people bullied her before she died but I can tell, she doesn't care."

"You read people very well." Reyna commented. "I wish I had that ability!"

Annabeth studied her friend hard. "You've got qualities you don't know about."

"Qualities that lost Jason to Piper." Reyna grumbled.

* * *

Nico sneaked into his father's study again. Police have taped the area as 'under investigation'. They had briefly looked through the area but never got into opening the drawers. The Shooter has been keeping them busy with different cases such as Drew's death.

Besides, they wanted to hire a specialist to look through the documents professionally. They know that Hades Di Angelo is a dangerous person and didn't want to touch his documents or be acquainted with it.

There has not been any more fax or any sign of Pork Chops, Steak or anyone else. They must have known Hades is dead so they didn't fax, email or do anything about him. Nico wished they did so he would have a better idea of who they are but a part of him didn't want to either. The police might find out about the communication giving them a head-start as well.

He flipped through Drew Tanaka's file, written in Hades' own neat handwriting was a letter surprisingly written to Nico as if Hades knew his son was going to look through the file.

Dear Nico,

If you're reading this, I'm probably not around. Either you're a naughty bastard who finally got the guts to look through my drawers or you're a naughty bastard who finally got the guts to look through my drawers and mourning over my death. If you're mourning over my death, let me tell you that you're probably the only one. You could not imagine how many people want me to die, the amount is so big it could go on and on. Anyway, if you're reading this, The Shooter has made it's move. Of course, I know who the Shooter is but it'll ruin all the fun won't it? My whole life has been a game, dealing with one round after another. If I'm gone, well I lost. It's now your turn.

Son, Drew Tanaka has been walking dangerous line for years. She knew too much and the Shooter has to get rid of her. She and her blabbermouth, it's easy for her to obtain information but just as easy to give it away. Nobody can trust her. There's only way to deal with that bitch and it's to kill her. I knew it's going to happen, it's just a matter of time.

If I knew this is going to happen, why didn't I prevent it? You are probably asking yourself this question. The thing is, I want her dead. Sorry if she's close to you but it's crucial. It's like leaving a bomb on the streets. It can explode anytime and the only way to keep it from hurting anybody else is to get rid of it.

Nico, it's all a game. A cruel, dramatic, treacherous game life is. You can go as the winner of the game, live a happy ending. Others like me are the losers, we get the worse part of the deal. Surprisingly enough, I don't mind. I don't mind being the loser if you, Bianca and your mom can come out as the winners. There's only one man you need to fight and people like Drew are simply minions. They are weak and easy to get rid of. Don't be one of them. You are my son and you are going to play the game in the darkest and most dangerous hours.

Leave Bianca and your mom oblivious to what's happening. They are too fragile and easy to lose. Good luck!

Lots of love (sarcastically),

~Hades

PS, get your fucking ass away from my office

* * *

"Piper!" Ashley tapped her shoulders.

"Oh hi, Ash! Do you er, still want to be the extra in my dad's new movie?" Piper blubbered, not knowing what to say and hoping it doesn't sound stupid. "I mean, it's all the way in Paris but if you want to fly there-"

"Never mind about that." Ashley shook her head. "So I have this Valentine party coming up and you're invited!"

"Thanks!" Piper grinned, another invite to Ashley's party. That is more than anybody can wish for.

Ashley laughed. "There is a catch though, your date has to be Sky."

Piper blushed, Sky has been her long-term crush. Sure, there's Jason and Piper really like him. She swear she loves him but Sky, that is like a celebrity crush. "Sky?" She repeated. "Does he know?"

"Oh, he does." Ashley smiled. "He does."

"Okay." Piper looked at the ground. She didn't want to appear pleased about this fixed date.

"He'll pick you up 6pm on Valentine Day in front of your house. Wear something nice, flirty and romantic. It is Valentine day after all! If you want, give him a little gift. Like roses or chocolates." She winked and sashayed away leaving Piper stuck for words.

* * *

"Dude, when are you asking Piper out?" Leo urged. "You're losing her, man."

Jason frowned. "Not this topic again! I'll ask her when I'm ready."

"When you're ready, she's probably already gone. From what I heard, your chances are getting slimmer and slimmer by minutes." Leo shook his wild curls.

"What do you mean?" Jason asked, sounding alarmed. "That sounds bad."

"She already has a date for the Valentine Dance Ashley's hosting."

"Ashley? Ashley Taylor?" Jason repeated.

"Yes, the one!" Leo nodded. "She's getting out of your social league and Sky is her date. You know, that guy who can kill with looks? She likes him."

"What?" Jason threw the books he was holding on the ground. "No! It can't be too late, could it?"

"Uh..I'm bad at maths, timing and that kind of stuff. Don't ask me, bro."

"Shit, shit shit!" Jason covered his face with his hands. "What am I going to do?"

"Solution for love? Lesson one, don't ask a guy who has nobody lining up to go with to any dates. Seriously, what's wrong with girls? Am I seriously that ugly nobody wants me? Don't anybody dig my wits and charms? I don't even have desperate girls like Georgina asking me out!"

* * *

**AN: Have you guys watched Contagion? That is a good movie! Okay..I'll stop with the random advertising but here's a new chapter! I think I'll have to update once a week from now on because of school :(**

**Anyway, Happy Martin Luther King Day! and you lucky American biatches, you got a day off ;)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	25. Silena's Secret

**'They were more than just a popular person with a great social and love life and pretty good grades...I'm going to find something to be known for other than the stereotypical it girl.' ~ Silena Beaugard**

* * *

Reyna quickly put her books inside of her bag. Unlike everybody in school, she is avoiding Cat. She didn't like disobeying her mother but she knew if she saw Cat, she'll feel the urge to talk to her. Slamming her locker shut, she ran outside and bumped into a boy he never met.

"Sorry." Reyna muttered and blushed as she looked up and saw one of the cutest guy she ever met. This boy made her forget about her frustration with Jason even though rumors has it that Piper is dating another guy. This boy is gorgeous.

"It's alright." He smiled. "I'm Sky."

Reyna froze. Sky…that sounds like Piper's boyfriend? She mentally kicked herself, why does she always fall in love with her friend's crushes? Curse the fates. "Reyna." She nodded. "I um..better go now. I'm in a hurry."

"Bye." Sky shook her hands and left. As Reyna walked out of the school doors, she rubbed the hand which touched Sky's on her cheek. What's wrong with her? She couldn't possibly fall for another guy Piper likes too! It's obvious who's going to win this battle - Piper.

Just wonderful, she told herself grimly. Perfect. What the hell is she going to do?

* * *

"So…" Jason rubbed his fingers together nervously. "Is it true, Pipes? You and Sky?"

Piper's kaleidoscopic eyes met his piercing blue ones and laughed. "I'm going to the Valentine Dance with him but we're not dating! Ugh, I don't understand how rumors always twist and turn to a different story once it gets out there."

"Oh, okay." Jason stopped himself from even showing a simplest hint of a smile. No way is his body language going to tell Piper that he's relieve! According to Thalia, she'll know that he likes her if that happens.

"Why?" Piper frowned. "Something's up?"

"No, nothing." Jason blurted. "I was just wondering-"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever. I mean, I forgot what I was going to say." Jason shook his head. God, why did he think for a split second Piper would want to ditch Sky to go to a date with him on Valentine Day instead?

"Oh okay." Piper smiled. "So found out anything about Silena?"

"Not unless you want to hear about how my dad thinks she's a slut." Jason shook his head. "My dad is so judgmental."

"Well, he is a judge." Piper laughed.

* * *

Rachel snuck around Annabeth's house. Obeying her instruction, she didn't leave the house or steal anything. Snooping around wasn't a no on Annabeth's rules. Maybe she should pay more attention making them knowing how dangerous Rachel is but she didn't.

Rachel went through Annabeth's emails. Oh, why do people their emails unprotected? Once you get by the password (which was as easy as 'seaweed brain'), you have power through everything on her laptop. There's science notes you can quickly skim through if you're behind in studies, pictures of Percy if you're apart of the Percy Jackson fan club, designs of buildings Annabeth wish to build when she's grow up if you really want to beat her in being a world famous architect 20 years later, anything you need to know about Annabeth.

Rachel didn't want to look through all of that. She wanted to know what Annabeth is doing about the Shooter. It isn't hard to see that she'll be the one leading her friends through this. Sure, Percy's the leader but Annabeth will have the notes on her laptop. Percy's good at on the spot scheming and quick thinking. Annabeth is more of a long-term schemer, she'll be the one plotting everything against the Shooter.

She smiled as she scroll through each mail. This is gold.

"Rachel! What the fuck are you doing on my laptop?" A voice snarled as Rachel jumped and found Annabeth's storming through the front door.

"Oh, nothing." Rachel quickly opened a new tab and turned to google. "Checking the uh..Oscar winners! Big fan of the Academy Awards."

Annabeth nodded. "You could have asked me for permission-wait," She frowned. "The Oscars are in Feburaury this year!"

"Shit." Rachel muttered. "Really? They are always in January?"

"Yeah! Piper was complaining about that the other day. Something about her dad being nominated."

"Sorry, I meant the Teen Awards." Rachel corrected herself. "Not Oscars. Silly me."

"Oh really?" Annabeth cocked her eyebrow. "It doesn't seem like that to me."

"But it's true. Completely true." Rachel protested.

"Ask me for my permission next time." Annabeth sighed. "Rachel, I trusted you to let you in my house. Don't barge into people's privacy like that."

Rachel looked at the ground meekly. "Okay."

Annabeth snatched her laptop and went up to her room as Rachel sat on the sofa and smirked. At least she got the information she needed.

* * *

BEEP! New text message. Percy glanced at her phone. Damn, another text from Leo? Leo sent hundreds of texts to everyone on daily bases. They were all pretty stupid like 'Gods! I lost my screwdriver!' and one second later 'Found it!'. They were documentaries of Leo's life. Percy frowned, not bothering to see what it's about. It's probably another episode of how Leo took a big dump and how much it resembled a chicken nugget.

BEEP! Another one from Leo. Percy ignored it. His ADHD has been getting into him. He must have drunk soda or ate some sugary stuff.

BEEP! Percy glanced at the phone briefly.

Leo Valdez: URGENT PERCE! ARE U IGNORING ME? THIS IS FUCKING IMPORTANT! IT'S LIKE YOUR LIFE! OH MY GOD, DO U KNOW WHAT UR MISSING OUT HERE?

All caps, typical Leo. Last time he did another 'emergency' text, it turned out to be the fact he was locked out of his home. About two seconds later, it was off red alert since he remembered he kept his keys under the carpet outside of his door.

BEEP!

Leo Valdez: PERCY! IT'S 6PM, U OBVIOUSLY AREN'T SLEEPING SO ANSWER ME! DID U SEE THE TEXT I SENT YOU LIKE A MINUTE AGO?

Well obviously he didn't remember where his keys are again or he couldn't remember how to solve his problem. The solution is always pretty simple, especially when it's Leo's problems. Everything seems a lot clearer when you stepped outside of the frame and analyze the situation better.

BEEP!

Leo Valdez: SHIT! A PIGEON DUMPED IT'S FUCKING SHIT ON MY LAWN MOWER OUTSIDE. I KNEW MY DAD SHOULD HAVE PUT IT INSIDE! BUT ANYWAY, THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT. NOT IMPORTANT COMPARED TO UR PROBLEM ANYWAY. URGENT!

Percy sighed. There's no stopping these 'urgent' text messages unless he read them. He picked up his phone and scroll through tons of texts similar to.

Leo Valdez: ARE U FREAKING OUT NOW? CUZ I AM! DON'T IGNORE ME, I'M INNOCENT! JUST A MESSENGER!

Finally, he got to a bottom and found the text Leo's other texts were talking about. It said:

Leo Valdez: RACHEL JUST SENT ME THIS ON HER PHONE. SHE SAID SHE FOUND IT LYING AROUND ANNABETH'S HOUSE. PLEASE DON'T KILL ME.

And beneath the words was a picture of Luke and Annabeth kissing.

* * *

"Piper, do you think there's something a bit different of Annabeth these few days?" Percy whispered across their lunch table. It's lunchtime and only Percy and Piper are at the lunch table so far. The others haven't arrived yet.

"Different?" Piper raised her eyebrows. "Not that. I uh.. don't think so. Why? And why don't you ask Thalia? She's closer to her."

"I don't they are getting along really well nowadays." Percy admitted. "And I don't know. I just have a feeling. I think we're kind of drifting apart and she's hiding a secret or something. Piper, your mom is like the love expert isn't she? She must have some genes rubbed off in you."

"Yeah.." Piper frowned. Okay, now she understands why Annabeth calls him a 'seaweed brain'. "Why don't you just confront her? Tell her what's bothering you."

"Excellent advice!" Percy beamed quickly but stopped. "But you don't understand the situation."

Piper pursed her lips. "Then tell me the whole story."

Percy glanced around him sneakily like he is in some spy movies infuriating his enemy's office and passed her his phone. "Look at this." He hissed pointing towards the screen.

"Oh." Piper's voice fell silent as her eyes met the picture of Luke and Annabeth kissing. "Damn."

"Exactly." Percy heaved a huge sigh. "I really like her and I don't want to lose her. I don't know how to break this to her either."

"Yeah." Piper winced. "That will be tough. If I were you, I'd tell her though. Relationships just don't work if you hide secrets from each other."

"Hide secrets?" Percy repeated. "Oh, look who's hiding it here? I'm just-"

"Stop." Piper commanded. "Look here she comes now. Good luck."

"Hi guys!" Annabeth smiled as she placed her tray next to Percy's. "How are you?"

"Can we talk?" Percy's green eyes met his girlfriend's. "It's important."

"Yeah?"

Percy felt Piper's nod of approval across her. "It's just I..I..I think you look gorgeous today."

"Aww, thanks seaweed brain!" Annabeth giggled. "You're not so bad yourself."

Damn it, Percy's mind cursed as he avoided Piper's eye. He blew it. He just couldn't do it.

* * *

"Hazel, why don't you just move on?" Frank suggested lightly. "You know, if Leo's going to act like this, it's no point."

"I guess." Hazel shook her curls. "But it's a girl thing. I can't just get over it."

"Leo's Leo. He's like a cannon, you can't tame him. It's impossible to get something out of him if he doesn't want to. Besides, there's tons of guys who want you." Frank said shyly.

"Like who?" Hazel frowned.

"Uh…certainly not me." Frank said a bit too quickly. "But like I mean your science partner! Uh…that guy who sits next to you in English!" He started listing every boy he remembered in school regardless if they really do like Hazel or not.

"I bet not." Hazel muttered. "It's Leo. I don't know what's wrong with him. He's just gone and we're still friends. I don't think I still like him but it hurts since he doesn't seem like he even remembered the time we dated. It's like I wasn't there. Like it never happened."

"Maybe it didn't?" Frank hinted.

"Let's just move on. Did you have any new information about the Shooter?" Hazel pleaded trying to sound brighter but it sounds ironic as the subject she is mentioning is pretty much the opposite."

"No, not really. It seems like the Shooter has quieten down. Maybe it's a dangerous time for it to move."

Hazel wondered for a moment. "Or maybe they have been working, just quietly and nobody noticed."

"Good point." Frank nodded. "I'll go check the news to see if there's any suspicious movement." As he moved away to get his phone, he sighed. They call boys complicated? Girls are from another planet.

* * *

Two years ago, Silena and Piper were hanging around Silena's house. It was a Tuesday night and none of them had anything better to do then. Piper remembered the night clearly.

"You know, Piper." Silena tilted her head as she brushed her glossy black hair with her fingers. "Life is so predictable."

"Predictable?" Piper frowned. "Well, I guess.

Silena sighed. "If only life has more thrills. I got everything I wanted."

Piper wondered, yes, Silena does seem to have everything. Popularity. Beckendorf. Rich parents who care about her but let's her do whatever she wants. Good grades. That's all Silena ever wanted. "I guess you got to wait for something then. There isn't much you can do."

"Maybe there is." Silena's dark blue eyes twinkled. "I haven't exactly figure out how my life would go at this stage but I can pretty much promise you that I'd be different. Different to make a change in my life anyway. It's going to be a risk..but fun."

"Uh, you can always try to get A stars." Piper suggested. "Different seems bad."

"B's good enough." Silena shook her head. "and I don't know. My parents have been great things in high school. They were more than just a popular person with a great social and love life and pretty good grades. My mom was best friends with your mom, weren't they? They did pot when they were in high school. I'm not saying I'm going to do drugs, smoke or basically become like Thalia Grace but I'm going to find something to be known for other than the stereotypical it girl."

Thalia Grace was known for basically being a rebel. It's a well known fact that she dislikes her parents since they are strict and likes to have everything perfect. Their parents are successful and urges their children to become as successful as themselves. Thalia didn't like how everything seems to be on a schedule in their household. Neither Silena or Piper was sure what Thalia did exactly to gain her bad boy reputation since she was in a different grade but everybody assumed and made up stuff.

And Silena told her. Piper was sworn to secrecy and she still hasn't told anyone. It shocks her. She knew Annabeth, Jason, Percy, her friends would like to know it. Annabeth would probably think it's a key part to solving the puzzle but Piper didn't want to disobey her dead friend's wish of keeping it a secret.

It's totally not Silena. Piper couldn't believe her secret. Luckily, she didn't have time to make it public. It was so un-Silena, Piper spent days and night worrying about the day everybody knows about it. It'll either completely ruin Silena's reputation or make it stronger.

* * *

"Why this sudden meeting?" Jason frowned. "I just got this text and darted over." He held up his phone for everyone to see.

"Sit down." Piper gestured to a seat next to her.

"And hey! Where's Annabeth?" He glanced at Percy expectantly.

"Yeah, exactly." Percy nodded. "Look at this and tell me what you think."

Hazel had a glum expression on her face as she handed him Percy's phone. "Look."

Jason grabbed the phone as he sat down next to Piper and glanced at the picture of Annabeth and Luke kissing. "Oh..fuck. I am so sorry man. So you guys are uh.. over?"

"This idiot over here lost his chance." Frank shook his head.

Leo sighed. "And I had money on you guys getting married."

"Seriously?" Piper glared at him. "Not helping, Repair Boy."

"Percy." Grover squeaked. "Annabeth texted me. She's wondering if you're in trouble or something. Apparently, you haven't texted back in 5 hours?"

"Shoot!" Percy quickly grabbed his phone back. "Guys, she asked me where I am. She wants to go out for a date."

"Tell her you have plans with your mom." Piper suggested.

"Text her saying you have a guys out with me, Leo, Grover and Frank." Jason shrugged. "Guys only, no girls."

"You're too busy to go?" Grover offered. "As in homework? Food tech?"

"Or how about you have extra swim training?" Frank added after thinking for a while.

"Say you have breast cancer and uh.. have to go receive therapy." Leo blurted out finding all eyes staring at him. "What?"

"Leo, he's a boy." Hazel rolled her eyes which suddenly glazed with sadness. "And that's pretty serious. My aunt died of that."

Jason laughed. "I am so going to get you tested."

"Just give me that." Grover snatched the phone clumsily and texted Annabeth something.

"What is it?" Percy fretted. "What are you telling her?"

"Here, catch." Grover threw Percy's phone back to him as he read the text silently.

"Seriously? A nature hike with you. Nature. Hike." Percy repeated. "Wow, you make me seem so..you. I don't do nature."

"Now you do." Grover beamed. "Come on! The wild is waiting for us, Perce."

* * *

**AN: Making love triangles and breaking couples a few weeks Valentine Day is perfect! Well, for me anyway. hehe, I love Valentine Day except for the fact I'll probably be spending it with cardboard cutouts of hot guys. Message me if you want to be my Valentine! Oh, and to keep my mind away from all those cute couples in my school, I'm writing a Valentine Special titled 'Poseidon's Adventure'. The introduction should be already up if you guys want to check it out :)**

**Sorry for not updating for a while, had a huge project due on last Friday so I have to work on it. Now that it's over, I can update! Yay!**

**~ Kisses, Emily**


	26. Pretty Lies

**"You guys are meant for each other, you can work it out." ~ Piper McLean**

* * *

"If you don't do it, you know what will happen." A sly smile crept up on her face. "I can imagine the headlines next week. The Shooter revealed."

"Stop." The Shooter said. "You, you are manipulating me to do something? You? Is this some kind of joke? I am threatened by a nobody."

"Won't be so much of a nobody if you fear me. Looks like I can check that off my list now. You're looking at the new mastermind."

"No, I refuse." The Shooter said firmly. "As much as it seems tempting to help, I have my own motives. I don't get bossed, I boss people around."

"I knocked down Piper McLean."

"Not kill. I'm not looking forward to a brief week of unconsciousness. I want her dead but I want her to find out my identity before she kisses goodbye to her life." The Shooter smiled creepily. "It's beautiful watching all these police, detectives, Goode high students trying to find out who I am when I'm just under their nose."

"How about dear Jason? Oh, how heartbroken he'll be when you killed his lovely girlfriend? You are fond of him, aren't you?"

"Of course I am!" The Shooter snapped. "Ah, Jason. Poor Jason. There's other girls out there. Not everybody will be like Miss movie-star McLean. He deserves better."

"How about Reyna? She's pretty fond of Jason too. What would you think Jason will be like if Reyna and Piper ended up in the cemetery?"

"Reyna?" The Shooter laughed. "I don't give a damn about her. Her mom pisses me off. Look, I wasn't going to hurt those girls. My intentions have already been done two years ago. BANG, my victims are all dead."

"Well, dear me. I am terrible at hiding secrets. If I have information you are scared to release, that isn't so good is it? The choice is yours, love. Do it or it'll be tomorrow's headlines."

"Excuse me. I am a highly respected member of the public and in the, well let's say criminal world. They all know me as the mastermind, the shooter but nobody knows who I am. Except for you of course, miss amateur." The Shooter gave a haughty laugh. "I don't believe your little threat can stop me from anything."

"Well, this might." She took out her phone and held it against the Shooter's face. An anonymous text to the police read:

The Shooter is…

"Shall I quickly type your name there? If I wrote it, it'll be in the records forever. You can't erase it. The 'delete' function would only make the text disappear from screen. It'll always be in the phone system."

"Leave." The Shooter said firmly. "Leave and I never want to see you again. Mark my words, fuck off and you'll be safe. If you don't, you will be the next one serving Satan down there in Hell."

"Oh, it's just the matter of time I'll meet you there." She shrugged. "It's not like you're an angel either. Next time I see you, you'll be behind bars, biatch."

"Here." The Shooter's eyes remained cold.

"What?" She asked confused. "Huh?"

The Shooter whisked out an envelope from the coat pockets. "The money."

"Wow, you're really giving it to me?"

"I don't exactly have a choice here. Now fuck off, get your sorry arse away from my sight." The Shooter threatened. "Next time, you won't be so lucky."

As she left, the Shooter opened the drawers and stroke the weapon fondly. There would be at least 200 people in that Valentine dance, perfect. If that amateur is going to point her filthy fingers and threaten the shooter like that, it's not going to work. The Shooter is going to teach her a lesson. Something she will never forget. Maybe she will end up being a victim this time. She is not getting away with the money.

* * *

"Percy." Piper said. "You are in trouble."

"Seriously?" Percy raised his eyebrow. "You call me when I'm in the middle of watching a movie and won't even say 'hi'."

"Sorry but you do know the Valentine Dance is next week don't you? Everybody is expecting you to ask Annabeth and the thing is, she cheated on you."

"Yeah." Percy winced. "I have been thinking of that but is there proof that the picture is taken when I'm dating her? After all, Luke is gone for like 80% of the time we're dating."

"He's alive at that time and Annabeth obviously knew. They might be secretly meeting each other or something. Besides, you guys were dating even before the Shooter." Piper told him.

"This isn't helping our situation." Percy sighed. "I don't know what to do."

Piper laughed. "Tell Annabeth. In fact, I told you to confront her like right after you saw the picture. It's unhealthy in a relationship to keep secrets from each other."

"I can't." Percy said. "Haven't you realized? I love her too much. It's impossible to just break up with her."

"Telling her doesn't mean you're breaking up." Piper reminded him softly. "You guys are meant for each other, you can work it out."

"I don't think it will this time." Percy admitted. "Seriously. She was cheating on me."

"Ask her for the details. Ask her why she was doing that. It will work out Perce, trust me." Piper said encouragingly. "It won't be that bad. Come on."

"Do you think I can do this?"

Piper cried. "Of course! Text her saying you want to meet her somewhere now. Don't do it over text or phone calls. You'll be such a jerk if you do that."

"Are you sure?"

"Do it now Perce." Piper told him. "Or I'll arrange it."

"Okay, fine! I'll do it now."

* * *

"Frank." Hazel tapped her friend's shoulder. "You realize we're like the only ones without a date to the Valentine Dance do you? I mean, not like the only ones without a date. Like without anybody expecting to ask us to the dance."

"Uh yeah." Frank titled his head thoughtfully. "And?"

"I was wondering if you want to go to the dance with me." Hazel blushed. "I mean not like as a couple, but as friends." She added quickly.

"Sure." Frank's cheeks had a slight twinge of crimson. "I'd love to. You know, so we won't be going alone."

"Yeah." Hazel said awkwardly. She really wanted to ask Frank out, not as friends but as a couple but she thought it would be hard. If Frank didn't like her that way, their friendship will be ruined.

"So.." Frank said. He's terrible at awkward situation and despised being in one.

"Uh.." Hazel shifted her foot. "You know, if anyone asked if we're a couple or not, should we say yes or no?"

"Say yes." Frank told her, a bit too quickly. "It's not like I want us to be a couple but we wouldn't look as bad if we pretend to be one."

"That works." Hazel said thoughtfully. "Especially when it's Cat's party. Shame Piper won't be there though, she'll be in Ashley's."

"Cat must be devastated." Frank commented. "I mean she and Piper are best friends and now Piper is ditching her for Ashley's party."

"Maybe Cat's going too."

"So Cat's ditching her own party for Ashley's." Frank frowned. "Don't see that happening."

"Yeah, you made it sound ridiculous." Hazel tilt her head towards one side. "I don't know how they're going to work it out but they seem to be great so I'm guessing no conflict."

* * *

"Hylla?" Reyna called. "What are you doing for Valentine day?"

"Im going to Ashley Taylor's party." Hylla replied smugly. "I got invited."

"And?" Reyna raised her eyebrows.

"Ashley is popular, Reyna. I'm not going to only be successful and rich. I'm going to be successful, rich and famous." Hylla boasted. "Too bad you're not invited, little sis. Everybody's going to be there."

"You're not the only one there." Reyna said bitterly trying to hide her jealousy. "My friend Piper's going. She got invited, personally."

"Piper..Piper McLean?" Hylla shook her head. "You're still friends with her after she stole your boyfriend?"

"Jason's not my boyfriend and he's not even dating Piper." Reyna corrected but hesitated. Is she even friends with Piper? Sure, people consider them to be friends but really, being envy of her constantly isn't healthy in a friendship. "and yeah, Piper's my friend." Reyna muttered slowly.

"Okay." Hylla shrugged. "So why did Piper get invited but you didn't?"

"Piper's friends with Ashley. Really, really good friends." Reyna added even when she didn't know it's true or not. She's sick of Hylla bragging and wanted to make Hylla feel jealous of somebody for once, like Reyna is herself.

"Um..okay?" Hylla frowned. "What are you doing? You seem so strange today."

"Oh nothing." Reyna said casually and picked up her phone. "Oh look! Piper just texted me! She's going to do the pool with Ashley tomorrow."

"Cool." Hylla sighed. "You know I don't really care. Why are you telling me this?"

"I don't know. Just thought you might like to know." Reyna smirked. "You might."

"Okay." Hylla shrugged and walked out of the living room.

* * *

Piper glanced at a framed photograph on her wall. It was a photo of her and Silena. Piper understood how Silena felt before she died. Piper's life is pretty much mess up but it was predictable. She wanted more thrills in her life. She wanted to do something that she know she would regret later on.

Piper sighed. Maybe the answer to her problems will be found in Ashley's Valentine day party. She wasn't that innocent girl everybody pictured her as anymore. After her fall out with Cat a few years ago, she thought Cat was a bad influence. Now they are friends again, Piper realized she isn't anymore. Cat helped her figure out that there are much more to life than being popular, prom queen, or somebody everybody wants to be.

People often compared Piper to Drew, Silena or Cat. However, if you really know them, you would realize they are totally different people.

Drew is more of a shallow, cunning, manipulative person. Everybody have somewhat of an impression that Drew is a total airhead but in reality, she isn't. She hid her intelligence and really, she is smarter than anyone. Her hidden cleverness had gave her advantage.

Silena is the beautiful, popular, perfect in a teenage way girl everybody looked up to. She has good morals but sometimes does illegal, unacceptable things in order to achieve the outcome which always benefits somebody.

Cat is the straight on bad-boy. She's one of those haughty girls who doesn't give a damn about anything. Her motto if she had one would be something like 'Live like today is your last day'. She is carefree, brave and dangerous. She is the loose cannon you want on your team.

Piper is the girl every mother wants. She is pretty, innocent, pure and nice. Despite all this, she isn't as perfect as everyone imagined. She is naive and have many things to learn about the world. She is fragile and easy to push over the edge. She makes a great victim, but also a strong enemy.

There's one thing all these girls have in common. They all have pretty lies hiding ugly truths. They have terrible secrets, some so bad they can kill simply by knowing them.

This makes all of them vulnerable victims. The Shooter wants to know the secret. The Shooter doesn't want the secret to get out. The Shooter would do anything to get information out of these girls or make them do what the shooter wishes. However, the consequences of being popular is that everybody knows about you. They study you. They know your strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes, they even know things about the girls they don't know themselves.

* * *

**AN: Pre-Valentine Day chapter! hehe, percabeth breaking up before Valentine Day... If you want a Valentine Day story, check out my story Poseidon's Adventure. :P**

**Next chapter will be the Valentine Day special :)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	27. Valentines Special

**Valentines Day Special!**

**"Don't you always want to be somebody else? Haven't you ever want to be anybody but yourself? Have you ever wonder what's it like for a day if you're anybody but you? What's the fun in life if you're the same person everyday?" ~ Justin Fontaine**

* * *

Okay, I lied. Percy told himself guiltily. He didn't break up with Annabeth. He really couldn't get himself to do it so he reluctantly asked her out to Cat's Valentines Party.

Percy still recalled the moment he met up with Annabeth and asked her.

"I was wondering when you'll ask, seaweed brain." Annabeth laughed in reply. "I love you."

It sounded so genuine as if Annabeth was truly in love with him. Percy hoped it's real, he tried convincing himself Annabeth is really in love but it didn't work. The image of her kissing Luke popped right into Percy's mind again.

"I love you too." Percy somehow got himself to say, it sounded rather dry to him though. It wasn't a lie but he wasn't sure he can say 'i love you' to someone who has cheated on him and might not really like him.

"So, you're picking me up at 6:30 in front of my house for the party?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah." Percy confirmed.

Annabeth had a huge grin on her face. "It's going to be awesome."

Percy nodded and had a fake smile on his face. He didn't see how it's going to be awesome when he's going to have to spend a night with his girlfriend who he doesn't know if he can trust anymore. He wasn't even sure how his current status with Annabeth is. Percy wished the whole thing is over and everything turned back to normal. Annabeth knew that he knew about her kissing Luke and it turned out to be some huge misunderstanding.

His relationship with Annabeth had been magical, like a dream until the picture shook his to reality. Now, he felt as if the magic was gone. There's nothing between them. He didn't want to hurt her feelings but just ending it abruptly especially before Valentine Day but he didn't know what to do either. He wish he could just break up over text but Piper would kill him. Texting would have been a much easier option, and after texting, he could go in hiding and hopefully never meet Annabeth again. Maybe he could get his mom to move to some small town in Texas or somewhere in the Australian outback where nobody can find him.

* * *

"You're going to the party tonight?" Leo asked over a phone call.

"Nah." Nico shook his head although Leo couldn't actually see what's he's doing. "What's the point anyway. Besides, I'm busy."

"You might meet some cute chick in the party. Cat probably knows some hot single girls." Leo cooed his friend. "It'll be fun! And I'll need a buddy like you since all of our friends have dates."

Nico laughed. "Sorry, bro. Don't worry, you'll hit it off with somebody once you get there. You won't be alone. I'm terrible at parties. I'm always in a corner just being unsociable and invisible. You probably won't even notice I'm not there."

"Drats." Leo muttered. "What are you doing?"

"Uh..you know. Cleaning up the garage." Nico lied. Really, he's in his dad's office again. He decided to spend more time looking through his dad's files. They had given him some insight on the situation so far and it is true. His dad seems to know everything. The files had great detailed explanation of everything and Nico is interested into looking at all of them. The police made him promise not to look at anything but the Di Angelos are never good at keeping promises.

"Fun." Leo said sarcastically. "Your mom?"

"Yeah." Nico said smoothly. "She's making me look through everything and dump out the useless stuff."

"Your mom had changed after your dad's er..death. She became more distant from you and kept making you do all these chores." Leo noticed.

Nico had noticed the change in his mother. She communicated less with her socialite friends and barely talked to Nico. She had spent her days up in her room doing god knows what. The 'his mom making him do chores' is a lie. Nico was just finding excuses so he didn't really have to tell his friends what he has really been up to. He never liked sharing things until he know the truth and the whole story. "Yeah." He agreed.

"So see you tomorrow or something?"

"Okay, bye." Nico said and hung up. Picking up random files off his father's desk, Nico skim through the documents.

Some of the files were dated a while back, as far as five years, but they still intrigued him. It seemed like the Shooter has been planning the attacks for a long time. After looking through more files, Nico realized the Shooter's plan. It wasn't hard figuring out, especially with his gifted shrewd mind. He still couldn't tell who the Shooter is but is motives are clear. The school shooting was only the start, there are a lot more to come and Nico is going to a Valentine Party.

* * *

Piper took a cup of vodka and gave it a sip. She knew it's illegal and she shouldn't be doing it but it's a party. Who cares? You're suppose to get all wasted and high in parties. Besides, everybody does it. Nobody gives a damn if you're of age or not. From the corner of her eye, she saw Sky talking with a hooded figure. Strange, Piper thought as she walked closer to them trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"No, she won't do that." Sky argued firmly. "I will protect her. Don't you think she's weak. You're wrong. You don't know her."

"Know her?" The hooded figure laughed. A eerie one that gave Piper creeps. "I know many things. I know everything in fact. I don't need to, in fact it's not important to me but seriously, sometimes it comes interesting when I do my ah..business to know more about them."

"Have you spoken to her? As in personally?" Sky challenged.

"No." The figure answered shortly. "But I know people who have."

"This is ridiculous." Sky shook his head. "I don't even know who you are."

"You don't have to."

"If you're going to threaten her like that, I would like to know who you are. If you're going to do that, you'll have to get through me." Sky smirked. Piper's heart drop, he is so cute when he smirks.

"Fine. Easy." The figure shrugged, took out a gun casually and aimed it towards Sky's head.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Sky yelled, drawing everybody's attention towards him and the figure. The DJ turned off the music so all you can hear was Sky and the figure. Nobody dared to move, they were all afraid of the gun. They didn't have a clue what would happen. All they knew was they could die any minute.

"I didn't invite this fricken hooded terrorist into my party!" Ashley screamed breaking the immense silence. "Oh my god! Police! Somebody call the police!"

"Fuck, what's going on?" Somebody shouted. It was on full scale panic mode, except it was only a verbal one. Still, nobody moved. They were just causing a scene where they stood before the figure took the gun out. "Where's the exit?"

"Put down your gun!" Sky ordered. "Who are you? Don't do this."

"Calm down." The figure said slowly. "I'm not here to cause some mass hysteria."

"Who are you?" Ashley screeched inching dramatically towards the stranger as she pointed her poker stick at it. "And get the hell out of my party. Right, put down your gun too. It's a weapon-free zone here. You're ruining my party."

"Your party." The figure stated. "Is a waste. I don't care what happens to your party. And fine, you want to know who I am? I'm the Shooter. Yes, the Shooter who killed a few idiots from Goode High a few years ago."

"Don't kill Sky." Piper blurted. She was nervous. She had watched Sky and this stranger converse and it got pretty intense. She figured that Sky would be fine until the fucking gun was pulled out. What on earth was the Shooter doing? Why is he..or she ruining her life? Piper wailed in despair as she tried to remain calm.

"Fuck that." The figure snickered and gave a loud laugh. If you can see the face, Piper could have sworn there was an eye roll. "I hate doing what people tell me to do, so guess what?" The figure pulled the trigger of the gun as a bullet launched towards Sky.

"No!" Piper found herself screaming hoarsely.

"Police!" Ashley called desperately. "Where are they when you really need them? No, they just have to show up when you're speeding but not when you actually need them."

Sky was in some kind of a dazed mood. He didn't bother moving for some reason but watched as the bullet hit his head. Slowly, he collapsed and fell onto the hard wooden floor. "Ugh-bah-as." He gargled as he stopped moving.

"Oh god, what now?" A girl rubbed her hands together nervously. "Please don't kill us."

Suddenly, from the midst of the frozen crowd, Nico Di Angelo took a step forward. "You have done enough." Nico's dark eyes gleamed dangerously.

"Nico Di Angelo. How interesting." The figure sneered.

Nico's voice was defiant, he seemed as if he was expecting this all along. "Go away. How much did you get paid to do this? A hundred bucks? Two hundred? A thousand? You would never be the original Shooter."

"What do you mean? He's not the Shooter?" A boy frowned. "Dude, he just admitted he is."

"If he is the true one, he won't confess it." Nico told the crowd. "I don't know who the real shooter is but this is a fake."

"No. I'm real." The figure insisted but it sounded lame now Nico convinced everybody he's fake.

"Remove the disguises." Nico challenged. "Let's see who you are."

"I'm the shooter. My identity is hidden." The Shooter claimed.

"Let's see." Nico sighed. Ignoring the gun now pointing towards him, he stepped forward and undid the knot holding the secrets behind.

"Justin?" Ashley stuttered. "Justin? What is this?"

"Ah, Justin Fontaine." Nico grinned. "I don't know you but wow."

"Police here. Don't move." Three burly men wearing police uniforms cladded with badges bursted in with huge guns.

"Tad late, aren't you?" Nico grumbled as Ashley collapsed onto her sofa. From fear, probably, or shock. It wasn't a secret that Ashley and Justin went out a few times and they were always a 'thing'. Piper didn't blame her from being upset and feeling disturbed that her boyfriend or ex tried killing Sky. Piper felt bad for Ashley.

"Nobody move." The police commanded.

The next hour was a blur. Journalists, detectives and polices came into the house making the space even more crowded. Everybody lined up to be interviewed by these people. Piper felt a bit sick seeing her date lying on the floor possibly dead. If Nico hadn't been there, Piper didn't know how she would have survived. Piper was pretty sure Nico wasn't even invited but it's a good thing he crashed.

Piper gasped. "No! It..it can't be happening!"

"Piper, this is the Shooter." Nico said strangely calm. "You're lucky he's not dead."

"But this is Sky!" Piper protested. "He had nothing to do with the Shooter. He's innocent."

"How do you know?" Nico questioned quietly. "You might think you know somebody but you actually don't. Sky might have been doing something behind your back."

"Impossible!" Piper refused to believe Sky was related to somebody in the criminal world in any sense. "He is so..pure. He won't do anything of that sort. I know Sky and he is good. If there's many shades of gray, he'll be in the shade closet to white."

"Piper, if it makes you feel any better. Sky really liked you. If he didn't, he won't risk his life to protect you." Nico said softly.

Piper choked back a sob but managed to smile. "Thanks Nico. Thank you."

* * *

"Oh my god." Annabeth cried. "Have you heard what happened to Sky - Piper?"

"Yeah." Hazel nodded. Her blood ran cold when the news travelled to her.

Reyna said bluntly. "I'm glad we didn't go to that party."

"I guess." Leo agreed. "But wasn't your sister invited? Is she okay?"

"She's probably fine." Reyna muttered under her own breath. "Not like I care anyway."

"Annabeth, there's something I have wanted to talk to you about for ages." Percy interrupted. He felt terrible for what happened in Ashley's party but he had to say it before he loses the courage. He knew it'll make matters worse but if he doesn't do it, when would him? Piper lost her date by a possibly deadly assault, losing Annabeth won't be as hard as that.

"Yeah?" Annabeth's gray eyes turned to him expectantly.

Percy took his phone out and handed it to Annabeth. "Explain this." He said quietly.

Annabeth took a glance at the phone and murmured hoasly. "Oh god. No, this can't be happening."

"Explain it, Annabeth. I honestly don't know what to say."

"When did you get this photo? Who gave it to you?" Annabeth asked urgently. "Who?"

"Never mind the details. It doesn't matter who gave it to me. What matters is I saw it and I need an explanation." Percy said, trying to sound strong and confident despite his insides crumbling seeing Annabeth in this state.

Tears started streaming out of her eyes. "No, Percy, you don't understand. This was nothing. You got to listen to me."

"That's not an explanation." Percy told her. "Give me a proper one."

"I-I can't." She stuttered. "It's best if you don't know anything. I'll be protecting you."

"Protecting me from what?" He frowned raising his voice slightly. "Kissing Luke is protecting me? That doesn't make sense."

"I can't tell you anything." Annabeth shook her head. "The less you know the better. They're after you."

"So? They can follow me all they want, they can do whatever they can do, but you don't have to kiss them to protect me. I don't need protection. Who are they anyway?"

"Sorry, Percy. I can't. It's a secret." She covered her face with her hands shamefully as she ran out of Cat's house.

Percy couldn't help but feel angry at his girlfriend, wait is she even his girlfriend? What is their status now? Anyway, Piper said it wasn't healthy to keep secrets in the relationship so Percy told Annabeth he knew about the kiss. Percy had nothing to hide now but Annabeth is keeping secrets now? What had this world turned into? Everything is so confusing now.

* * *

"Tell me why are you doing this?" A police interrogated Justin Fontaine.

Justin smirked. "Why not? Give me a reason why I shouldn't."

"You killed Sky!" Piper screamed in fury."Does Cat even know about this?"

"Cat?" Justin laughed. "Cat's nothing. I don't even know why people think she knows everybody secrets and stuff. If I'm Ancient Egypt, Cat won't even be Ancient Greece. She would be New York while everybody is some newly developed cities."

"Um..what?" The police stared at him as if he's a lion inside a zoo cage.

"You won't get it. Your brain is equivalent to a pea." Justin said smugly. "Besides Sky isn't dead and Cat, forget her. She never listens to her genius of a brother. She calls me crazy and psychotic. Tell me, do I look like a lunatic to you."

"Lunatic?" Piper repeated. "You're more than that."

"Why did you impersonate the Shooter?" The police asked trying to break up the argument between Justin and Piper.

"Why not? Don't you always want to be somebody else? Haven't you ever want to be anybody but yourself? Have you ever wonder what's it like for a day if you're anybody but you? What's the fun in life if you're the same person everyday?" Justin questioned.

"I suppose so." The police sighed. "But why don't you pretend to be superman on Halloween? There, you're somebody else for that night. You don't have to pretend to be the Shooter and assault Sky."

"Sky's a dick." Justin waved his bottle of whiskey around as people duck to avoid it. "Who cares about him anyway? We have a bit of history back in high school."

"Okay, let's start new. I'll ask you in a different aspect. Do you know who the Shooter is?" The police asked making eye contact with Justin.

"No." Justin answered honestly. "I don't but who the hell cares? It's not about who the shooter is, it's about why the shooter killed people. Did we do something wrong that made the shooter pissed off? Do we have the reflect on ourselves?"

The police nodded. "Valid point there. Other than being one of those most outrageous, dangerous, evil young adults this neighborhood has seen, you'd make a great police."

"Thanks." Justin beamed. "I always wanted to be apart of the FBI."

"Justin." Piper walked over and hissed at him. "If I were you, I won't threaten to kill people's date and possibly have killed them before I join the FBI."

Justin smiled. "Oh, pretty little Piper. You can do so much better than Sky. You should be glad I got rid of him for you."

"Shut the fuck up." Piper snarled. "If you're a color, you would be the darkest, most poisonous shade of black."

"And you would be an pure, light, cute shade of pink." Justin said. "Oh, the innocence you own Piper. It's so rare these days.

"Fuck you." Piper's cheeks turned pink. "You don't even know me."

"You have no idea how much Cat talks about you." Justin replied smoothly as he got up. "Now excuse me, I believe I can call my lawyer now."

* * *

**AN: Happy Valentines Day! xx I hope you like this Valentine Special! hehe, so Percabeth broke up and Sky is half-dead? Dead? Alive? Okay, I have to figure out his status now...speaking of statuses, forever alone here! Lucky couples ;) **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	28. So Close yet So Far

**"I wish I was just living in a story and I can flip to the last page to see how everything ends. That way, life would be so much easier." ~ Piper McLean**

* * *

"What are you doing here?" Piper whispered hoarsely.

"Thought you might needed some er.. moral support." Jason rubbed his fingers together nervously. True, that was like 10% of why he came, but he mainly came to see Piper. He haven't been able to see Piper during Valentine Day and that's pretty much why his sucked. At least his love life didn't go down the drain on that supposed day of love, Percy and Annabeth broke up because of this photo of Annabeth cheating on him. Percy just couldn't have found a better time to do so. Talk about right timing.

"It's okay." Piper murmured. Jason thought it sounded more like she was convincing herself than anybody.

Jason tilted his head. "So is he alright?"

Piper placed her head on the table and admitted. "I hope so. I don't know."

"How long are you going to stay here?"

"Dad says I have to get out of here somehow. There's school next week. I already took Friday off." Piper sighed. "I'll probably be going soon. I don't think the nurses like bringing Sky and me meals."

"I..I have to bring you home. Orders from somebody." Jason made up quickly.

"Who's the somebody?" She frowned. "Oh, never mind. It's probably another of my dad's workers or Jane or even my mom."

"Right." He nodded.

Piper checked her phone and shook her head. "What's up with Percy and Annabeth? It's spamming over my Facebook notifications and I'm getting hundreds of texts from Percy and Annabeth asking for 'relationship advice'. Like I'm one to give. My date ended up in the hospital."

"It's not your fault about Sky." Jason started. "and they broke up. Percy finally showed her the picture."

"On Valentine Day?" Piper cried in horror, it's almost like she forgotten Sky's situation. "What the hell is Percy thinking?"

"Yeah. On that day."

"Oh god." Piper grasped her phone urgently and went through her Facebook notifications. "Crap. Forget Sky. I don't usually like or do anything with love, that's for my mom, Silena and those kind of people, but this is Percy and Annabeth. They must be devastated. We're going. Wait..Jason, you can drive right?" She looked down at the ground. "I can't."

"It's alright." Jason grinned. "Got that covered."

* * *

Percy threw his phone on his bed. Piper hasn't been answering his questions concerning his relationship status. Okay, he knew he was being selfish but he couldn't help it. He honestly didn't want his relationship with Annabeth to crumble the way it did but Piper probably deserve some space judging by the state of her date. Piper haven't replied to any of his texts, phone calls, messages (from Facebook, Skype and all kinds of social network. He even made a Tumblr account just to spam Piper's ask with his questions).

Normally when he needed advice, he'll go straight to Annabeth but it wasn't much of a choice today.

It didn't occur to him that in Annabeth's bedroom, she was doing the same thing. Pacing back and forth trying to get Piper to somehow contact her. Sure, there are other people in their group that could give advice but Silena was always the best at understanding love. Now that she's gone, Piper's the second choice. Her mother, Aphrodite, spent a lot of time teaching her daughter about the whole concept of love (like she understood, she's a hollywood socialite and fashion designer/model. She doesn't care about academic studies or anything philosophical.).

Love is such a funny thing, none of them knew it'll be over so soon. They thought it will last for quite some time but they were wrong. Who can blame them? With love, you're always wrong.

BEEP! Percy got up as he checked his phone. Yup, a message from Piper. Finally. She must be pretty pissed at all those 'spam' messages. He was expecting capital letters and an angry Piper, instead she only sent a 1 lined text to him. Not actually to him, since it was also to Annabeth.

'Get back together.'

Well, that's helpful. Piper was always the best at giving advice. (Sarcasm here, just in case you haven't noticed)

* * *

Leo wiped a tear off his eyes comically. "That was emotional."

"Shut up, Leo." Reyna snapped. "The Notebook is horrible. I am never watching it again. It's all sappy and romance. Besides, you're mocking it."

Hazel smiled. "It's such a sweet movie! I'm glad Lacy introduced it to us. I mean, why didn't we watch it before?"

Frank nodded quickly. "It was amazing." Leo could have sworn he disagrees but Leo could tell that he liked Hazel and would agree with her no matter what she said.

"Nicolas Sparks novels." Leo sighed. "If you're interested in them, Frank, I'm sure Lazy has a whole box of them in her bedroom. I can ask her to lend you some if you like. I'm sure they would be as romantic as this movie."

"Um..no thanks." Frank looked horrified. "I'm not a big reader."

"Don't worry!" Leo said cheerily. "They have Nicolas Sparks movies like the Notebook too! I heard Dear John is great, maybe The Last Song? The Lucky One?"

"Nicolas Sparks…" Frank turned around. "I would like to try something new. Star Wars?"

"I was thinking more of the Time Traveller's Wife. Also starring Rachel McAdams from the Notebook." Leo grinned.

"Ooh! Lacy said it's also really good!" Hazel smiled and pushed her friend playfully. "We should watch that one next, Frank."

"Oh great!" Frank tried glaring at Leo but looking happy at the same time towards Hazel but it really wasn't working. Reyna bursted into laughters. "What?"

Reyna shook her head. "Nothing you need to know about. Keep on doing whatever you're doing."

"You're teasing me." He guessed.

"Nope!" She said cheerfully as she faked a set of laughters. "I..um..laugh randomly. It's weird. See? A laughing attack's coming!"

"That's weird." Leo commented. "Like to be honest, you're always as serious as my dad is when he's around his machines. You can hardly take a joke, leave laughing aside."

"What the hell?" Reyna protested. "Come on! After knowing you for years that's how you describe me?"

"So a more serious topic." Frank wasn't convinced about Reyna's unusual 'laughing attacks' but stopped asking her. "What are we going to do with Percy and Annabeth?"

"Percabeth?" Leo asked innocently.

"What?" All three of his friends stared at him.

Leo shrugged. "You know. Percy, Annabeth, Percabeth? How many times do I have to explain this? I'm pretty sure I used the whole Brangelina example like thousands of times."

"Brangelina?" Reyna raised her eyebrows.

"Whatever." He shook his head. "Still, they can't just break their relationship. It'll be really awkward next time we hang out at school or something. It's a good thing Annabeth has her committee meetings so she didn't have to face him during lunch time when we're around. I seriously don't want to get between them."

"Same!" Reyna agreed, although she sounded colder than usual and she said almost robotically. "I really hope they will be back together."

Hazel sighed. "I know. I wish I could do some magic that just makes them go back together."

"Annabeth should explain what happened." Frank added thoughtfully. "They should talk through it."

"Talk through it." Leo repeated. "God. I don't even know what happened. Why doesn't she tell us what happened first?"

Frank whispered to Hazel. "We never tell him anything. He's a blabbermouth."

"I know." Hazel nodded. "He doesn't even know how his tacos disappeared last time."

"Or why Thalia kicked him in the shins." Reyna added.

Leo wasn't paying attention to his mumbling friends. It didn't occur to him they were talking about him or anything that might be useful. He was absorbed in the magic of his mind again. Wait..is his dragon model working correctly? Maybe he placed the wrong screw so it wasn't able to breathe fire as it is suppose to. His dad should know how to fix it. Oh, dammit. He was going to start on another project today. Instead, he was stuck watching the Notebook. Why did he even agree to his? Now his whole schedule is behind.

Yup, just Leo's mind working. Sometimes, it goes on and on about even more random things Leo is puzzled about. These ideas just pop into his mind and he couldn't stop thinking of them.

Why isn't there pink M&M's? Girls would like them. So would guys if they like pink. Pink Smartie? I think that already exists, Leo told himself. If broccoli and cauliflower are living creatures and they have to fight each other, who would win? Definitely cauliflower. No, maybe broccoli. Annabeth should know the answer. Wait, no, she might not. Probably Harry Potter will. He's magical. Does Harry Potter even exist? Why didn't I get a friggin letter to Hogwarts yet? Maybe they just forgot to mail me the letter. I'm obviously wizard material. Dumbledore will like me. Draco Malfoy would too. Who won't? Leo smiled at himself, I'm adorable. Even Voldemort can't resist the charm and wits of me. I can burn him. I can burn anyone. Come at me, Voldemort! Wait. Maybe Voldemort's the Shooter. That'll explain everything. Who the hell is the Shooter anyway? He or she is such a coward, they won't admit who they are. Why do I have a feeling it has something to do with Percabeth's break up? Never mind, I have weird feelings all the time. Like I'm feeling rather dizzy. Why would I feel dizzy? Ooh, I'd like some cheese. They're yummy. Somebody should open a cheese stand. Like a lemonade stand but they'll be selling cheese.

Leo's mind went on and on. Little did he know, he almost got an answer out of his busy brain.

* * *

"I was thinking about the Shooting and everything." Jason confessed as he drove the car.

"Really?" Piper raised her eyebrows. "What have you got so far?"

"I think it might be related to what happened to Sky." Jason paused. "I know it's Justin and he obviously isn't the Shooter but still, I can't help feeling like there might be some connection."

"Connection? It's Justin." Piper laughed. "From what Cat told me, he's probably just taking a piss from it. He's probably laughing in the courtroom or something now. He'll get away. The Fontaine family can afford the best lawyers and they can win any case, even if it's pretty hopeless. He is no Shooter. He couldn't even be working for the Shooter. Justin has that kind of attitude where he's never going to get a job. He's planning to live his life off his parent's money."

"I don't know." Jason admitted. "I don't know Justin as well as you do, Cat knows him even better. It's just one of those gut feelings you can't ignore."

"Yeah." Piper agreed. "I know that feeling and I hate them. 70% of the time I get them, I'm wrong."

"So you think this is false?"

Piper shrugged. "Might be."

"I just have a feeling everything's connected. Dr. Marshall. The Shooting. Drew and Mr. Di Angelo's death. Justin. Everything."

"Maybe you're right." Piper broke a piece off her chocolate and gave it a bite. "I wish I was just living in a story and I can flip to the last page to see how everything ends. That way, life would be so much easier. All the mysteries will be solved."

Jason reminded her quietly. "Some mystery remains even when you're gone. I was technically gone for two years and the answers aren't here yet."

"True." Piper nodded. "But that's because you're back. Why didn't the Shooter kill you? Did he or she had special fondness for you and didn't want to kill you? Did he or she simply made a mistake and thought you were dead but in reality, you weren't?"

"I wish I knew but the only person who knows everything is the Shooter."

"I've been thinking." Piper scratched her chin. "Well, I am now anyway. Maybe you're back for a reason. Maybe somebody wanted you to be alive. Maybe you have a huge role to play in the future. My dad told me that everything happens for a reason. There's a reason why I'm in this car now, there's a reason Sky is unconscious, there's a reason you're here with me."

* * *

"Bianca, so you'll be going back to England." Nico nodded at his sister curtly.

"Don't go, B!" Their mother held onto Bianca and grasp her in a big hug. "You have no idea how alone I am here."

Nico faked a cough. "Excuse me."

"Ah, sorry, Nico. I know you're around and I'm not really alone," Their mother said. "But it's a girl thing. I love you, Bianca."

"I love you too, mom." Bianca smiled.

"I use to love my mythomagic cards." Nico grumbled resenting the attention his sister's getting. "And did anybody care?"

Things have gone weird since Hades Di Angelo have died. Their mom have became less stubborn and strong. It seems like she has been broken. Nico knew Mariah Di Angelo knew more than she let on. She also seemed very cautious, as if they're the next target if there's another killing. What have they done to provoke anybody anyway?

"Nico." Bianca finally got away from her mom's grasp and looked intently at her brother. "Take care of mom when I'm gone and please don't sulk all day in your bedroom. It's not going to help. Dad's gone and we all need you back in reality."

"Fine." Nico scowled. "The world I have in my head is a lot better than the nightmare I'm living though."

"And don't go inside dad's office again." Bianca hissed softly. "It's not safe. Everybody knows that. Mom's in your hands, you can't put her in such a dangerous spot. If people knew you were sneaking inside and looking through those files, you're the next victim. Imagine mom in that state if it ever happens. Don't do it to mom or yourself. Do this for dad."

"Promise." Nico rolled his dark eyes insincerely. He have no plans intending to stop. What dad knew was way out of this world, he couldn't let go of something like that which is just next to him. It tempts him daily like how the snake tempted Eve into eating the fruit.

Bianca had a small, sad smile on her face. "Thanks, I know I can count on you Nico. One last thing, don't hold a grudge. It's a thing with the Di Angelos. We hold grudges and it leads to our doom. I learnt my lesson a long time ago."

Nico was curious but decided against questioning. What grudge could his perfect sister possible held and led to some kind of 'doom'? Her life is content and great, didn't seem like any sort of biggie hit it. "I'll try not to." He muttered.

What does Bianca know about the grudges and Di Angelos anyway? Is holding grudges a genetic sort of DNA thing that transfer from generations to generations?

* * *

There was a knock on the door. "Come in." Jason groaned as the door opened. It was as if it didn't even wait for the permission. Of course, it could only be his dad.

"Jason." His dad nodded stiffly. "We need to talk."

"Dad." Jason squirmed uncomfortably. It's rare that his dad pays attention to him and now he knocks on his door demanding for attention…what? "About what?"

"Life." His dad answered inviting himself to sit on Jason's bed. "Not my idea," he added quickly. "Your mom says it's good bonding between father and son."

Jason lowered his laptop screen and turn around to face his dad. "Alright. So my life's good. Yours?"

"Is there something wrong?"

"Nothing much." Jason mumbled. "How's yours?"

Jason's dad sighed. "There's something wrong, isn't there?"

"Whatever." Jason rolled his eyes and told his dad about Piper.

"Don't go after Piper!" His dad urged. "She's got enough problems of her own from what I've heard. Don't worry son, high school's tough. Now, it might seem like everything to you but believe me, there's still so much out there. College, work, and much more."

"But..dad, do you even know Piper? It's my life! And what do you know about high school?" Jason raised his eyebrows. "Is it like 20 years you've been in school? 30?"

"Shut it." Jason's dad gave him the evil glare. "I'm still cool. I keep up with the latest trends. I know all the dance moves to High School Musical. (AN: Direct reference here from the pilot episode of Modern Family ;) ) School wasn't that long ago. We're all in this together, once we know, that we are, we're all stars, and we see it!"

"If you call decades 'not long'." Jason grumbled cutting his dad's number short.. "Do you really not want me to ask Piper out?"

"Come on." His dad shook his head. "It's your life. I should know. I'm a judge if it gives any credits to this case, but I'm also one of the most socially active-"

"I know." Jason threw his arms wide open. "You were like super popular in high school and whatever. You should know everything to do with high school because you hang out with the supposed 'cool' people. You have told me and Thalia that like millions of times."

"What can I say? I was really popular back then!" Zeus Grace said defensively. "And I know this situation. Get rid of the McLean girl, you can do much better! What's wrong with that another one..Reyna is it? I mean, other than the fact her mom was a total nerd back then. I don't know anybody who actually read To Kill a Mockingjay for English when the movie's sitting there practically begging for us to watch it instead. I'm not a big fan of her but she's better than Piper."

"Reyna..Reyna's fine." Jason stuttered. "I just don't like her as much as I did before. I mean, I like her as a friend but not a girlfriend. I liked her before though, the magic just seemed to be gone."

His dad snorted, one that Jason found insulting in some way. "Kids these days. Putting that aside, what else are you doing."

"I'm trying to find out who the Shooter is." Jason admitted quietly. "He or she has taken away two years of my life. Two of the best years, probably if I was around. I really would like to do who that person is. Also, you know Doctor Marshall?"

"Yes?"

"I think he have some connections to this." Jason told his dad followed by the story where he suspected Dr. Marshall was changing the tape and what Lawyer Brown mentioned earlier about his past.

"I don't like it." Zeus stated. "Should I hire another doctor for you?"

"No!" Jason cried. "Losing him would be like losing the closet connection or hunch to the truth."

"I wish." Zeus muttered only loud enough for himself to hear. "But the Shooter is closer to you than you want it to be."

* * *

**AN: asdfghjkl; I'm so excited! My friend who moved to another country came back to visit for a few days! :) Okay, enough about me..wassup guys? xx Sorry, I know Piper's a bit OCC but don't worry, she'll be more in character later **

**hehe, hope you liked this chapter! xo**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	29. The Awards

**"Maybe it's like one of those hide and seek games where you're crazy finding that object but really, it's right in front of you." ~ Frank Zhang**

* * *

"Boss, I'm sorry. I told you he's unpredictable." Luke said apologetically.

"I know." The Shooter said shortly. "That's why I picked him."

"Is it a good thing?" Luke asked, lighting up just by a bit. Knowing his boss, he shouldn't get his hopes up.

"No."

Luke's heart sank. He knew it. Now what is coming? The Shooter is so predictable it's hard to believe he's someone else.

"I'm going to watch a few episodes of Desperate Housewives." The Shooter said unexpectantly.

"Um..okay?" Luke frowned. Wow, what the heck?

The Shooter laughed. "Just kidding! You don't think I don't have a sense of humor, do you?"

"Er..of course you have a sense of humor!" Luke forced himself to laugh alongside his boss. "Great one too! I wish I had one like that."

"I knew it." The Shooter said triumphantly. "All I need to do is get rid of that skank, Piper."

"Piper?" Luke repeated. "She's dating..Jason."

"I don't want Paris Hilton dating him." The Shooter said firmly. "Piper is like a Kim Kardashian wannabe."

Luke nodded half-heartedly. "Agreed." He didn't know Piper but if Piper is one of Annabeth's friends, she surely isn't somebody like Paris Hilton or Kim Kardashian.

The Shooter went on, despite Luke wanting to be spared from a lecture. "Why would Jason even pick Piper? Look, I don't care who he dates and whatever but seriously, Piper of all people? Blasphemy."

"I..better go now." Luke pointed towards the door. "I need to get some rest and fly back to San Francisco."

"Keep in touch." The Shooter gaze out of the window once again as Luke slipped away.

* * *

Piper forced herself to smile at the cameras. She couldn't possibly embarrass her dad. This is the Academy Awards, it's a big deal. She couldn't possibly spare to make a single mistake.

"So, Piper McLean!" One of the reporters jumped in front of her blocking her path in the red carpet. "I see you have landed yourself on a date with this blonde cutie over here."

"Right, Jason." Piper nodded. It wasn't really a date but her dad told her to bring a guy to the awards. Her first choice was Sky but it wasn't really anything since he is in the hospital at the moment and Jason was really last minute. It's a wonder he even agreed to this one day before the awards.

"Jason. Cool. Now let's focus on our beautiful daughter of Tristan McLean. Where did you get that dress?" The reported asked completely ignoring Jason now. Apparently, they're only interested in knowing names and then they're back to their planned script of 'oh my god, that necklace is beautiful! Is it Tiffany?' or 'Valentino Dress! It looks absolutely gorgeous on you!'. Piper hated those topics. She didn't give a damn to who designed her dress. In fact, she would come in her usual mix-and-match of anything she could find in her closet (which sometimes can include Hello Kitty pieces and everything kids her age don't normally wear) if it wasn't such an important event.

"It's Alexander McQueen." Piper replied. "It's quite a work of art, isn't it?"

"Oh yes, girl!" The reporter cried. "It brought out your kaleidoscopic eyes and oh my god. Have you seen the back?"

Piper spun around as if it was cued. "The patterns are stunning." She agreed adding as much enthusiasm into it as she could though she had none. She stole a glance at Jason who was standing quite awkwardly in the side looking around. He probably still couldn't believe he was standing on the same red carpet Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt stood on. He also tried to look occupied despite the reporter paying no attention to his existence.

"And that bracelet is breathtaking" The reporter breathed. "How much did it cost?"

Piper shifted uncomfortably, why the hell would they want to know that? "It's my um.. mom's. In fact, it's in my family for generations." She lied.

"Antique." She commented. "I love it."

"Thanks."

"I heard this will be quite a great year for the Academy Awards." The reporter started. "With so many great movies being nominated, it really is going to be a tough one!"

"Tough." She repeated and rubbed her wrist for the unexacting watch. "I have to go now. It was nice talking to you!"

"There we have, Piper McLean and her date Jason." The reported faced her camera and grinned.

"Wow. The paparazzi, the celebrities, the glam and fame, it's real." Jason shook his head in disbelief as he walked down the carpet with Piper. "And oh my gods! Harry Potter!"

"Harry?" Piper raised her eyebrow.

Jason blushed. "Sorry, got used to the whole Harry Potter thing. I seriously can't even watch the Women in Black without yelling 'Harry Potter!' out loud."

Piper laughed. "It's amazing how your parents let you come to Hollywood with us. After all, it's quite far from New York and we'll be missing two days of school because of this."

"Yeah, especially my mom. She have been like super protective with me ever since Thalia sort of ditched us." Jason told her. "I mean, Thals still live with us but she's more like the whole 'I'll eat your food and sleep here but for the rest of the time I'm gone' sort of personality. Neither of my parents liked it."

"I can imagine but it'll be cool. After the Oscars, I got us into parties." Piper grinned. "Besides, I like to get away from New York sometimes. All the drama and unnecessary crap."

As they walked inside the theatre and took their assigned seats, they felt fortunate to be among the world's most famous people. They started to enjoy ceremony more than they expected although it haven't even started. Piper found herself chatting to the celebs who sat next to her as they engaged into a conversation of movies released this year and Jason was on his phone texting his friends. He realized nobody would really start a conversation or anything as he is new here and doesn't have direct connections with any celebrities. He didn't really mind though, it was awesome just being here.

The theatre seemed so safe and the event is just so harmless nobody suspects anybody dangerous would be lurking around. Sure, there might be a few crazy mob fans hanging about but they aren't much of a trouble. You can pretty much get rid of them with a few burly security guards. However, this isn't insane crowds. This is somebody people feared of, some people still have nightmares because of what they done and they have a gun.

* * *

Annabeth stared at Percy's TV screen refusing to look at her ex-boyfriend. It was Leo's idea to try and spot Piper and Jason from Hollywood live. Annabeth suspected it was also to somehow reunite her and Percy but from what happened on Valentine Day, she won't even be talking to him for a while.

"I spy with my little beady eyes..Amanda Seyfried!" Leo announced. "You Percy? How about you, Annabeth?"

Percy and her in the same (well sort of the same) sentence. There got to be some plot under this.

"I see Halle Berry!" Frank pointed at the celebrity as Leo glared at him and some understanding passed through their eyes Annabeth didn't know about. It was even more obvious it was a plan to get her and Percy together now.

"Not helping." Leo muttered and look brightly at Percy and Annabeth. "You guys?"

Percy squinted his eyes. "George Clooney but no Piper or Jason."

"Kristen Stewart." Annabeth muttered as her gray eyes stayed on the screen.

"I was thinking more like you two spot somebody together." Leo suggested. "Do you guys see somebody?"

"Steven Spielberg." Percy answered automatically.

Annabeth finally turned her gray eyes away from the screen but they were almost murderous as they were set on Leo. "Why are you forcing us together?"

"Forcing you?" Leo laughed bluntly. "Wha…No..! Besides, it doesn't mean anything asking you guys who you spot. I ask everybody that. Hazel! Frank! Reyna! Spotted anybody?"

"Way to keep it subtle." Reyna shook her head and murmured.

"Ooh, Emma Stone!" Frank jumped up excitedly as Hazel nudged him. "Right. I mean, Percy? Annabeth?"

"Is everybody in this plot?" Annabeth sighed. "I'm leaving."

"Don't go!" Hazel tugged her friend's shirt. "Leo will stop annoying you! Right, Leo?"

Leo frowned. "Bu-bu-but you and Percy are like-"

"Forget it." Annabeth shook her head.

"Fine!" Leo blurted out. "I'll shut up."

* * *

"That was awesome." Jason breathed as his glass of beer banged against the table. Yes, they are underaged and in a public bar but it didn't matter. A party's a party, even if you're a pre-teen you can get a cocktail in them.

Piper took a sip of her alcoholic mix. "Will your dad kill you if he knew your drinking that without his permission or anything?"

"Yeah." Jason admitted. To be honest, he is scared his father would find out. He has always been the role model and role models don't drink, especially when they're not 21 yet. He wanted to impress Piper though and if she drunk alcoholic underaged, he didn't want to be the guy who was all innocent and drunk soda instead. "He's in another state though, he won't find out."

"Looking good." A random drunk guy slurred as made himself comfortable right between Piper and Jason as if they were old friends despite being strangers. "Girl, are you horny?" He did his best to flash a cocky grin as his hands wandered around her.

"Fuck off." Piper snapped as she slapped his hands.

The guy raised his eyebrows. "Ow, babe. What was that for? And have anybody told you that you're hot when you're feisty?"

"Get lost." Jason said firmly trying to help his friend. "Who the hell are you anyway?"

"69 year old pedo." Piper answered for him. The guy looked in his late twenties but he was offended by the comment of him being 69 years old. "Pick somebody your own age."

"Whatever, loser." The guy rolled his eyes and sauntered off finding his next victim. "You're not worth my time."

"Does this happen often?" Jason questioned.

Piper shrugged. "Yeah, I guess it is pretty often for a drunk dude to come after you. This is a bar, those kind of things are expected. People don't know what they're doing when they're drunk."

Jason took another gulp of his beer as he felt his face turning pink. The taste was queer as he never tasted it before but he was starting to get fond of it. He was self-conscious being in the bar and drinking for the first time. It seemed like he missed off a lot of his last two years and even if he is around for it, he probably won't have been doing what he's doing now. He feared his father's wrath too much. He can be quite ferocious especially since he is very arrogant and powerful. "Right."

"You never done this before, have you?" Piper guessed.

"No…I mean yeah, I did this before." Jason lied as he tried to sit down on a chair casually while almost tripping himself clumsily.

Piper laughed. "Liar."

"No!" Jason muttered defensively. "I..I always do this." He looked up and saw Piper with an expression that is obviously teasing him and realized she was never going to buy it. "No..I haven't."

"Knew it." Piper grinned triumphantly. "Anyway, got anything planned for the next few days?"

"I want to see the Hollywood sign and stuff. Sorry, I never been to LA before so I'm guessing you're bored since you probably saw it thousands of times." Jason said thoughtfully as a man in a suit walked up to them. "Oh god, not another pedo." Jason groaned.

"Don't worry, he's wearing a suit. He can't be that bad."

"Are you Jason Grace?" The man asked formally.

"Um..yeah." Jason nodded. "I'm Jason."

"You don't know me." The man said as if it was a proper introduction. "but we need to talk. Who is this lady beside you?"

"Piper McLean." Piper replied. "In case you're here for my dad's signature or something, you're not getting it."

"Looks like you would have to come along too." The man gestured them to follow him. Normally, they wouldn't be following strangers anywhere however, both of them were slightly drunk from their drinks and had a fuzzy mind. Neither of them thought it was a threat of anything, they only felt obliged and annoyed at this man who practically ordered them to join him.

Soon, they found themselves in that man's limo. It was a pretty nice, spacious and sleek limo. Jason and Piper were both comfortably sat still unaware that their lives are in the hand of the stranger now they're in his car.

"Who are you?" Piper demanded.

"Your friend Percy's dad." He answered. "You may also know me as Poseidon Jackson. I prefer to be called 'Mr. Jackson' though."

"Percy's dad." Jason repeated. "We've been friends with Percy for quite a while and we never got to see you before."

"There's a reason for it." Poseidon stated. "It wasn't right with our families histories. At first, I didn't approve Percy's friendship with you, Jason and I definitely didn't like him being with Annabeth. I'm glad they broke up now. I saw the relationship status change on his Facebook page. Anyway, I don't mind him being friends with you, Piper. In fact, I liked your friendship with him."

"Why me?" Jason wondered aloud and asked. "Have I done anything that er.. offended you, sir?"

"No, no no." Poseidon shook his head. "How should I know if you have? I never met you before. No, it was your dad."

"Poseidon." Jason repeated again as if a memory was beginning to trigger in his mind. "Hey! Weren't you my dad's best friend back in school?"

"I don't like to talk about that, but yes." Poseidon said grimly. "We're no longer friends and I don't wish to see him anymore. Your father is a very ah.. secretive, cunning person. Nobody realized how dangerous he is except for me."

"Only you?" Piper asked as she raised her eyebrows. "Nobody else?"

"No." Poseidon said. "Not even his family. Jason, even though your mother is your father's wife, I bet she doesn't know half of the things about him. Well, of course there is another person who knows it but he is also a rather forbidden subject."

"Who is it?" Piper pressed on.

"Nico's father. Hades." Poseidon said softly. "I know both of you would be drunk after the Academy Awards as you are now. Drunkards are easy to lure and I have done it successfully. You are both under my grasp. I know everybody won't be expecting you to go back to New York for a couple of days but now you aren't expecting to go back for a one or two weeks. Don't worry, I got everything under control. You have nothing to worry about. You, especially you Jason, need to know something before you return."

"Percy's dad. A crazy kidnapper." Jason muttered. "Great."

* * *

Leo and Reyna found their ways to the waiting area in front of Sky's bedroom. Sky was still unconscious but Leo promised Piper to give him a small gift everyday prepared by her. He didn't fancy visiting the place again but his relationship with Piper are like siblings, sometimes you have to do each other favors.

Reyna scrolled through her texts. "Jason and Piper won't be coming back for a few weeks. Her dad set them on a special task in LA."

"Do I still have to give Sky a gift?" Leo asked. "If I am, I'm not paying."

"Piper said she sent you another crate of gifts to give him everyday." Reyna laughed. "Looks like you'll be visiting this place more than you would ever want to."

"Excuse me, are you close friends with the young man inside that room?" A nurse hurried beside them.

Reyna shrugged. "You can say that, I guess."

"Do you know where he is?" The nurse said urgently. "He's missing."

"What?" Leo cried. "We just got here and he can't be missing. He's unconscious, he can't move because he felt like he needed a break from this madness."

"Exactly." The nurse agreed. "Somebody smuggled him elsewhere and we don't know. Our security cameras have been disabled and the film for our back-up version has mysteriously disappeared. Somebody have been planning to take the gentleman away carefully."

"And no other nurse saw somebody carrying a body outside?" Reyna frowned. "You have some crappy security here."

"With all due respect, we're running low on funds and I am deeply sorry we couldn't afford the best but this is simply not logical. Nobody visits Sky other than his family members which haven't come today so it couldn't be them, that brown hair kaleidoscopic eyes girl who haven't been here for a day so it wasn't her either and you guys. I am sure he was there an hour ago but just a minute ago, he was gone." The nurse said. "If you stole it as a joke, this isn't funny."

"You can see we're empty-handed." Leo grumbled. "It obviously couldn't be us. We don't have a big ass case to hide some body in."

The nurse glanced around desperately. "I'll remind you if we call the police and you're caught, you're in serious trouble. I can see a few years in Juvenile Detention because of this and a bad college report."

"Don't worry, you won't see us there because we didn't steal Sky. Why would we steal somebody anyway?" Leo said growing impatient.

Reyna's calm brown eyes gazed at the nurse. "Let's just go now. Leo, it's not worth arguing with her."

* * *

"I don't know why she's ignoring me." Percy muttered. When Leo and Reyna went to the hospital, Annabeth thought it was prime time to leave leaving him with Hazel and Frank. "She had some explaining to do and it's starting to seem like it's my fault. What is Annabeth hiding?"

"I don't know, man." Frank shrugged. "She does seem to be kind of pissed at you. Have you done anything lately that annoyed her?"

"Not that I could think of." Percy said thoughtfully. "Our relationship weren't at the best recently but nothing big."

Hazel's amber eyes blinked. "Maybe all she needed was a little time to herself."

"She never needed that but I guess." Percy muttered. "Why are girls so complicated?"

"We're not, it's just that sometimes you guys have to understand us." Hazel jumped to her gender's defense. "In fact, sometimes it's actually really easy to but you just miss the signs."

"What sign did I miss this time?"

"I wasn't there chaperoning your relationship with Annabeth every second." Hazel said patiently. "I'm not sure but I'm sure it's something simple."

Frank suggested. "Maybe it's like one of those hide and seek games where you're crazy finding that object but really, it's right in front of you."

"Ugh, I hate them!" Percy shuddered. "It's like, seriously? Why didn't I see that before! It's so annoying, I kick my shins every time."

"Exactly." Hazel smiled. "You're probably going to do that when you know the answer. Sometimes, things are silly like this. When it's not solved, it seems very complicated and difficult but when it is, you wonder why you haven't figured that out before."

Frank checked his phone. "Annabeth's free. I can ask her to go to a coffee shop supposedly to meet Hazel but then you show up."

Hazel frowned. "So we're going to lie?"

Frank squeezed her hands. "Yeah, we are."

"Bu-but…we can't."

Percy couldn't help but smirk at Hazel's protest. She is just so innocent she doesn't even approve lying that much. Lying is one of those crime everybody commits and although it can be quite big at times, nobody really minds. It's like human nature. It's just funny how good Hazel remains even at being towards the end of a teenager.

"Sure, we can, Haze." Percy had a cocky grin on. "Come on, besides Frank is telling her that. You won't be involved."

"He's using my name!" Hazel pointed out.

Frank looked at his crush and he couldn't say 'no' to her anymore. "It's alright. We'll just say Reyna wants to meet her."

"Let's do it." Hazel sighed.

* * *

**AN: This chapter was obviously dedicated to the Academy Awards (or Oscars) which was last Sunday! :) I loved it, aha I always watch it every year :P What did you guys thought of the shows? asdfghjkl;, I was so excited for Jennifer Lawrence! xx **

****For all those who watch Pretty Little Liars, Spoiler Alert!****

**Yeah, I kinda know how Sky disappeared was like how Jason disappeared from his hospital bed a few episodes ago but it's nothing like that ;) I guess it's just a coincidence both of them have to disappear...**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	30. Drew's Step-Brother

**"Drew is made from layers and layers of secrets, lies, manipulation, gossip, pure bitchiness, a fake personality and I have a feeling it's more than that. I grew up with her for more than 10 years and I still don't understand her. Nobody does, not even the person who's closest to her if she have somebody. She's complicated and tricky." ~ Mitchell**

* * *

It was towards the end of college. Zeus, Poseidon and Hades have slowly drifted apart. Of course, they still reference each other as best friends but it was becoming clearer and clearer their friendship is going away.

Zeus had fell into the 'in' crowd with Tristan and Aphrodite McLean, the most popular people in Goode High. He now hung out with Tristan and his friends. Poseidon and Hades have became closer than their relationship with Zeus but not as close as it was before. Hades hid in the shadow and gradually, people noticed him less. He hardly seems to be around and he is the type of people that you'll find in the back of the classroom. Poseidon became closer to his swim team. As swim captain, he spent more and more time with his swim buddies.

It wasn't the fact they spend less time with each other that driven them apart forever but it was the fight. The last day of high school was suppose to be either excited or happy for a new term in college or a sad and regretful moment that the high school life is over. However, this wasn't Zeus, Poseidon or Hades' last day. Sure, they had their time with their groups creating last high school memories (or in Zeus' case, watching Aphrodite cry and sniffle that she couldn't bribe her way out of college since she already did that to get her in some famous fashion school in Paris). Nonetheless, that wasn't it. Neither of them is sure how the fight came to be. Did one of them try making conversation which led to bigger and bigger arguments? Did they just fired straight away at each other?

It didn't matter. The memory burns into every single one of the mind. It never left them and whenever they had a spare moment, they always thought of the fight. What would happen if things turned out differently on that day? That day drew best friends into sworn enemies. Zeus swore to kill Poseidon and Hades one day while they plotted schemes against him. Poseidon and Hades secretly have anger for each other and had plans drew out if another fight between them broke out and what they would do. They had rigged their house with the best security, just to keep each other away from one another.

The fight wasn't pretty but it wasn't completely ugly too. It was the truth. It wasn't black and white. You can't label Zeus as the bad guy, Poseidon as the good guy, Hades as the guy who sorted everything out or anything like that. They each had a bit of bad, good, and anything a friendship could have in them.

Some people might say you shouldn't leave a fight unresolved. Maybe it's true but at times, the fight is so untouchable, you don't want to talk about it anymore. It even hurts recalling the memory. You just don't know what to do and what you have done - no matter if you regret doing them or not - is done. You can't change the past. What you said is history. You can't wipe it out easily like a mistake on a math test.

Nobody knew about the fight except for them. Everybody thought they just drifted away from not meeting each other for a long time or some innocent, simple reasoning like that. They won't have guessed what it was about as they never been through anything like that before. It was dangerous, yet thrilling to have watched the argument. It's interesting how people you used to know everything about could suddenly become strangers. It's funny how you knew little things like what is their favorite shop, what is their least favorite fruit, which celebrity they can't stand but then again, you're not suppose to know it anymore. It's crazy how you know all his darkest secrets knowing you can reveal it anytime especially in the state they left one another but couldn't bring themselves to tell the world about it. It's amazing and truly a horrifying work of art.

"We need to talk." Poseidon said briskly over the phone. It was amazing how he even got his phone number. Zeus had change his at least three times and never gave it out to somebody like Poseidon.

"Agreed." Zeus sniffed distastefully as if he had much better things to do but was obliged to agree. "And let's do it over phone. I don't want or need to see you after what happened to Hades."

"No." Poseidon said firmly. "In person."

"I don't want to be seen with you!" Zeus complained. "You are like a..social reject!"

"That's your excuse back in high school." Poseidon snapped. "And I'm not a reject. Just because you're more popular than me doesn't mean I'm the bum of everybody."

"Fine. Starbucks at 11 tonight. You know where." Zeus sighed. "I'll come to you since I'll probably be wearing some sort of disguises."

* * *

"Reyna?" Annabeth called as she stepped inside the restaurant. It had a dim setting and romantic candlelight were set on every table alongside a rose. It didn't seem like the type of restaurant her friend would go to but she'll ask about it later when she finds her. "Reyna?"

The restaurant wasn't small but you can see the whole place when you take your first step inside of it. Nobody in the room had Reyna's dark brown hair. In fact, nobody looked familiar in it..except..there's this guy with black hair in the far corner. Slowly, the boy turned around revealing sea green eyes and a face she knew too well. Percy. Percy of all people.

"Annabeth?" Percy seemed pretty shock to see his ex here. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just going to ask the same thing." Annabeth narrowed her gray eyes. "Oh I see. Somebody set us up. Reyna's not here at all. Well, I'm going."

"And waste this?" Percy gestured at dishes of fancy food in front of him. "This probably costed Leo - or whoever that set us up - a fortune."

"Percy, if I stay or vice versa, we'll be falling into their trap. They want us to eat the food. Go ahead, you can eat it."

Percy bit his lips. The food was pretty expensive. He would know since he paid for it and the plans just can't go down the drain. "I..I can't pronounce the name of these food. I'll need somebody to. They aren't pizza or cheeseburgers. They are really posh things and I don't want to eat snails."

"Well, good luck eating those beetles over there." Annabeth laughed harshly.

"Look, I don't even know what happened to us." He started staring into the wall behind her. "I don't know what I did for us to crumble. All I need is an explanation for..that picture."

She waved the subject with her hands as if she didn't want to talk about it. "Percy, it's not your fault. Nothing is. Don't blame yourself or anything, okay? It's me. I just needed some time to think and I really don't want to talk about it. You're a great guy, but I don't know anymore."

"Don't know anymore?" Percy echoed. "It's not like I'm going to propose to you. From the last few days, I can tell we aren't even friends anymore."

"Luke's a great guy too." She sighed. "I always thought he was more into Silena, even though she had Beckendorf. They were always flirting but still, she remained faithful to Beckendorf. And of course, there was Thalia. You know I used to love him a lot. When he finally came around, I can't just sit there. It was like a childhood dream coming true."

"Your childhood dream was to become an architect."

"That's _still_ my dream now." She snapped.

"He's gone now." He reminded her. "Unless you know where he is and held information from everybody which I think you do."

Annabeth reassured him. "I don't. I know somebody who knows where he is but I don't."

"Who is that?"

"I don't think I can tell you." Annabeth shook her head feeling a bit embarrassed. "We kind of had a falling-out just a few weeks ago and it's awkward. I'm not going back to find her or doing anything with her anymore."

"Come on!" Percy whined. "I won't tell anybody or march straight up to her asking for Luke."

"Thalia." She whispered. "We fought over him, if you must know."

Suddenly, Annabeth found herself telling him the things she have kept as a secret and promised herself not to tell anybody. She realized she was getting closer to him that ever before. He was so easy to talk to..no, this is exactly it. She was falling into whoever that set them up's trap. This wasn't good but she couldn't help herself pouring everything to Percy.

* * *

Reyna wasn't feeling especially satisfied of herself. Her life wasn't exactly straighten out. She still needed to study for her exams which is two weeks away, deal with Hylla for one more day (thank god, she is going back tomorrow), go to her parent's stupid boss's party and make a good impression and frankly, she had quite a lot of things to do. Normally, she's stressed but for once, she was actually feeling calm and pleased.

What is she happy about? Reyna wasn't sure. It's not like Jason came flying into her arms or anything. He's stuck in another state with his not-yet-girlfriend-but-everybody-knows-they-will-date. Her little crush on Sky haven't been going well either. If anything, she should be down and depressed.

"Reyna, right?" A voice she didn't recognized whispered softly.

Reyna froze. What the-. Who? "Excuse me?" She frowned. "Is someone there?"

A tall boy with blonde hair and stepped out from the shadows. He was good looking in the friendly, classic, all-american way but not really Reyna's type. "So you are Reyna." He nodded. "I'm Mitchell."

"I don't um.. believe I know you." Reyna raised her eyebrows. The boy looked familiar, as if she saw him a couple times at school but not like the type where you know somebody personally.

Mitchell laughed as he shifted his foot awkwardly. "Nobody really does but for what it's worth, I'm in your Spanish class."

"Sorry." Reyna shook her head. "I didn't recognize you."

He shrugged. "That's alright. I don't really mind anybody. My step-sister has such a great reputation, it's hard to keep up. I can't fill in her shoes and be what everybody expects me to be so I just back down and you know, go with everybody. I'm pretty sure the majority doesn't even know who's my step-sister. I have my own friends, not an awful lot though, but other than them, nobody really knows me. Sometimes, I don't even think teachers know me."

"I know that feeling." She agreed. "My sister, Hylla is like everybody's favorite and I'm simply not. It's tough, but why are you here today? Did I do something that offended you or something?"

"No! Well, not that. I'm here to talk about my step-sister."

"Who's that?" Reyna asked.

"Drew." He replied. "Drew Tanaka."

* * *

Cat narrowed her eyes at her brother. "God Justin, what the fuck happened on Valentine Day?"

Justin laughed. It was no surprise when his lawyers beat those government beginners. Getting into trouble was totally okay in the Fontaine household, you can get out of anything. Justin knew his little stunt in Ashley Taylor's party wasn't a big deal. "Was nothing. Haven't you heard about the other things I do? Sky was just injured. I killed people before."

"I don't give a damn about your tutor or whoever you killed. In fact, I won't even care if Sky's dead but it's Piper." Cat explained. "God, she's my friend. You don't hurt your sibling's friends."

"_Piper_?" Justin repeated. "Seriously? She got more than she needed. It's fine, sis. She's in…I don't know, London now? Athens? Rome? Berlin?"

"LA. The Oscars." Cat reminded him.

"Exactly!" He waved his arms around like he didn't care. "She's fine. She'll hook up with a few of those celebrities and everything will be alright."

"You're sick." Cat sneered. "Hook up? She's not going to have a one night stand with anyone. Besides, she got that Jason with her. He's sensible, he won't fucking let her even get drunk. He never even took a sip of an alcoholic drink."

Justin had a comical expression on his face. "Oh, a friend now? She is so getting over Sky's little injury. If she's not getting in with any celebrities, she's getting in with that fella. When did you get so close to Piper anyway?"

"Since we became friends again?" Cat made it clear that it sounded like 'duh! don't YOU know?'

Justin rolled his eyes as he took out his phone indicating he didn't care what Cat was going to say. "Whatever. What's done has been done. If it makes you or Piper feel better, I'm sorry! Do I need to send somebody a bouquet of flowers? Or would a box of chocolate be better?"

"That's not the point!" She growled. "I just need a damn explanation for that night. Why the hell would you pretend to be the Shooter and actually shoot down somebody? Why were you even talking to him?"

"The Shooter." Justin bursted into laughters again. "This city is full of cowards. Just because this psycho dude decides to shoot a few losers like two years ago, people are freaking out. It has been two years and I bet that guy just lost his marbles for a few hours. He's fine, probably shitting himself for killing these people. There's a reason he didn't make videos taunting people and posting them on Youtube. There's a reason he didn't kill anybody else. There's a reason he's laughing at everybody like you and those police who are still worried about it."

"How do you know?" Cat asked quietly. "I know the Shooter murdered Hades Di Angelo."

"What?" Justin took sudden interest in the topic. "He did?"

"Might be a she." Cat shrugged. "But the Shooter left a note in Hades' body that revealed he killed him. The police found it but kept quiet about it and gave it to his son, Nico. I'm not sure what Nico has done with it or if he even showed anybody the note but that note is important."

"You aren't friends with that emo or the police. How did you get the note?"

"Easy." Cat smirked. "I was there when the body of Hades have been discovered. I was the only person who wasn't smitten with Tristan or Aphrodite McLean. Why would I be anyway? If I wanted their signatures, I can just head over to Piper's house and get them. Anyway, I noticed the body but the note was sticking out of it. I took a peep at it and placed it back inside. Nobody noticed me as Piper's parents are way too interesting. They're great, they're totally clueless of what's going on yet helped me so much."

"Did you see who placed the dead body on the gravestones?" Justin questioned curiously.

"Of course, but that is going to have to cost you something, bro." Cat smiled devilishly. "We both know the Fontaine family have generations of secrets and lies to keep and hide. We both know the Fontaine family are to be feared of but people still admire us. We can work together. Find out who the Shooter is and imagine how big the information would be. Police would die to keep us in line, the Shooter would do anything for us not to reveal the identity, the families of the victims would beg to know who killed their family."

Justin thought for a while and slowly nodded. "I like it. It'll be like the old times. How that old sod - what's his name again? Marshall? Brad Marshall? - had his life ruined because of us. He thought he could get away with everything but we're too good for him. This is something else even better. I'm in."

"Let's do it!" Cat cheered and took a can of soda out of the fridge. "Coke?"

* * *

"I figured out you were investigating my step-sister so I wanted to give you a hand on that." Mitchell explained. He and Reyna were in his room killing time.

Reyna raised her eyebrow. "How did you know?"

Mitchell laughed. "You better be careful what you said around here. Anybody can hear anybody's conversation even if it's suppose to be private. How else does Drew get her gossip and know practically everything going on in the school?"

"Wow." Reyna mouthed. "So she taped microphones or recording devices all around town?"

"In the least suspecting places. It's genius, really. I found out about this myself only after she died and I was looking through her room for any embarrassing records she might have of me. Trust me, growing up with her was the opposite to pleasant."

"Why are you helping me?" Reyna asked.

Mitchell shrugged. "To be honest, I really don't know. You seem like a nice and genuine person. Besides, you'll never get the full picture of Drew without me. Drew is made from layers and layers of secrets, lies, manipulation, gossip, pure bitchiness, a fake personality and I have a feeling it's more than that. I grew up with her for more than 10 years and I still don't understand her. Nobody does, not even the person who's closest to her if she have somebody. She's complicated and tricky. I wanted to learn more about the girl I lived with even though she's gone and since you're doing the same thing, why don't let's do it together?"

Reyna pursed her lips. "Okay. Why don't let's start with her bedroom? Have you looked through the whole thing?"

"No." He admitted. "Only her top drawer which consist of nothing but her diary, her phone, a few Gossip Girl books, Gossip Girl TV series and a couple of movies like Mean Girls and 10 Things I hate about you. You know, girly stuff. I didn't really pay much attention."

"Her diary." Reyna repeated. "Ever look through that?"

Mitchell stared at her as if she was speaking Martian. "Pfft..no? What kind of a step-brother do you think I am?"

"Mitchell, it's a diary. It contains secrets and basically her life. You're way too nice to her judging by how she treated you."

Mitchell sighed. "That's what I've been told many times but it's not my nature to do so. Why don't let's change the subject. Reyna, you know Leo?" Mitchell started. "He has a crush on you."

"Leo? No.." An uneasy laugh came onto Reyna's throat. No, this couldn't be possible. Leo can't like him. They're friends, best friends and she doesn't like him..that way.

Mitchell smiled. "It's true. I can see the way you guys go together."

"No!" Reyna cried a bit too loudly. "I don't like him like that but I don't want to hurt him. He's amazing, you know as a friend."

"Friendzoned. You know it's not good, Reyna. Haven't that happen to you before with Jason?"

"How did you know?" She gasped. "I don't even know you before this."

"Drew has lots of lovely secrets. I know more than I should." Mitchell told her. "Seriously, think about Leo. That poor guy thought nobody will ever like him."

"He's adorable!" Reyna said. "There got to be somebody who will like him."

"Drew said that he only fall for girls who are tough, strong and out of his league. His previous crushes included Khione who graduated, I think, and Thalia."

Reyna spluttered. "Thalia? And me being tough and strong on the same level as Thalia? That boy's crazy."

"Go ask Leo out." Mitchell urged. "He needs somebody. He has been an outsider enough. I can tell even by watching him everyday. Soon enough, he can make his own sad musical to pity his own life. His life is messed up enough. He isn't what he appears to be, I read his file."

"File?" Reyna raised her eyebrows. "She has files about everybody? Talk about creepy."

"No!" Mitchell laughed. "Not really anyway. She accidentally sent me a document labeled 'Leo Valdez' a few months ago. She's not careful for a person with all those things."

"I'll think about it." Reyna sighed. "But seriously, he's my friend. Not my boyfriend. I am so not dating him. Thanks for making everything awkward between us. I can't even talk to him now."

Mitchell rolled his eyes. "Come on, Reyna. You can't hide from him forever."

"Hiding?" She frowned innocently. "Who said anything about that?"

"Everybody knows that would be your next move."

"Fine." Reyna muttered bitterly.

* * *

"Luke! Come back!" Thalia urged firmly through the phone. "It's not safe for you in San Francisco!"

"Please, I have to stay." Luke whispered. "New York is even more dangerous. At least nobody can touch me in San Francisco."

"Then don't come back. Go to Sydney, Hong Kong, Istanbul, anywhere but America. It's not hard going around America to track down one guy." Thalia insisted. "I can't…you can't have anything bad happening to you. Be safe."

"Thalia, you need to know everything. I don't know what will happen to me anytime and if there's one person who can write a biography of me, I want it to be you. Meet me in five days. I'll text you the address. Don't worry, I'll take the fastest flight to New York." Luke decided. "And how's Annabeth?"

Thalia heaved a sigh. "Fine, I guess. I really don't know. We kind of fell out, I don't really hang out with her anymore. She does seem a lot moodier than before and according to her Facebook status, she broke up with Percy."

"Good." Luke growled. "I never liked that Percy. Tell Annabeth to take care."

"Luke.."

"Right, you guys aren't close anymore." Luke said. "So..keep me updated."

"You don't even live here anymore."

"I like to see what my old buddies are up to." Luke shrugged. "Come on."

"Fine. Jason and Piper are shipped to the Oscars and I don't think they're coming back for a while. Again, Percy and Annabeth broke up but knowing Leo, he'd be finding ways for them to get back together. Reyna is still oblivious with Leo's crush on her. Grover's doing okay but his girlfriend Juniper has been pretty protective lately for some reason. Frank and Hazel seriously have to get in there. They aren't even dating. Travis got to stop bugging Katie or he'll never get her. Connor needs to find a new girlfriend. Nico's sister is back in England so that poor guy is alone again but he doesn't really seem to mind it. Rachel is still hanging around, I have suspicion that she's stalking Percy but what's new? Cat is like BFFs with Piper again - this is pretty old, did I tell you this before? Clarissse hasn't changed one bit, still ready to kill the Shooter. Lacy is getting into everybody's nerves with the whole 'oh my god, it's Valentine day' thing a few weeks ago." Thalia started.

"Great." Luke laughed. "Nothing new, I can tell. But honestly, was there anything astonishing? Something more than just those every-day gossips?"

"Right." Thalia stated. "Uh..yeah. Like on Valentine Day, Justin Fontaine decided it was some kind of dress-up party and came to Ashley Taylor's party as the Shooter and actually brought a gun with him. Apparently, he kind of went psycho and shot Piper's date, Sky. I think Sky's okay but he's in the hospital unconscious at the moment."

"Sky?" Luke sounded surprised. Thalia wasn't exactly shock that he felt that way. Sky was similar to Piper, both popular and liked by everybody. Parents loved Sky, they thought he was the perfect role model. He achieved outstanding grades, play sports, look cute, a lot of girls had huge crushes on him. He wasn't exactly totally pure as he had drunk alcohol a couple of times and on extremely rare occasion, took drugs but he managed to keep that quiet and nobody really suspects him. Sky was one of the least likely person to get into some kind of fight or arguments as everybody who knew him described him as a peacemaker. Justin couldn't possibly shoot Sky for no reason so there must have been history between them.

"Mmm." Thalia murmured. "I know, right? But it's Sky, alright. The very one who suggested to ban social networking at school to suck up to the teachers."

"I'm pretty sure that was a dare." Luke recalled.

Thalia laughed harshly. "That doesn't mean he had to actually do it. Good thing Leo found proxies and ways around that regulation. Thanks to that stupid dare that idiot actually committed, our whole school had Facebook banned."

"Listen, I have to go now." Luke whispered softer than usual. "Wait for my text and remember to show up."

* * *

**AN: And you all thought Poseidon was in LA with Jason and Piper? ;) Yes..the parents will be rather interesting characters and play some kind of a role in the story since I thought it'd be unfair to just ditch them aside. **

**I know I first published this story in like September which seemed like a long time ago but it's amazing how I'm on Chapter 30 and it's already March. I have to admit, this is probably the story I committed most to. So as a Chapter-30-anniversary kind of thing, if this isn't the longest chapter of the whole story, it has to be one of the longest so yay! :)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	31. Messed Up

**"I'm saying you should trust your instincts, your heart, your mind but nothing else. You're not far from the answer but be prepared for everything." ~ Poseidon Jackson**

* * *

Grover isn't the type of person who joined Environment groups for Service points to get into College. He wasn't the type of person who was forced to join and really didn't give a damn about the environment. He genuinely felt he was needed to somehow make an influence or some kind of impact to safe the world. He would go around town cleaning up every single bit of garbage found on the street. He participates in beach clean ups, save the animal or something rallies and he is an avid supporter of the environment.

As the president of the Goode High Environment Group, he cared deeply even about the slightest harm hurting the environment. He built a reputation for himself for being every construction worker's nightmare. One time, Grover stayed on a tree for three days just to protect the tree from being chopped down for a new skyscraper. The idea was very unrealistic especially when Grover got the idea from TV shows but it worked. He got Juniper to give him food, water, his laptop, more food and nessicities like that. Of course, when he had to go to the toilet, the sight wasn't lovely and it wasn't entirely comfortable for Grover but if that's the price for a tree to be saved, to him, it wasn't a lot. He had to do it.

Juniper loved the environment as much as her boyfriend but she wasn't as wild as him. She didn't approve some of Grover's crazy schemes but as a girlfriend, went along with them grudgingly. Another reason why she often came long Grover was to keep him away from other girls. There was no doubt (especially in her eyes) that Grover is cute and caught many girl's attention. Juniper really hates it when another girl flirts with her guy and knowing Grover, even when a girl is about to kiss him, he would have no idea. She have to be around to stop girls from taking him away.

There was more to why Juniper is more obsessive with her boyfriend than anybody else of course but that leads back many years to when Juniper only started having a crush on Grover. They were only in Grade 5 at that time and the key was in biology lesson. Juniper's lab partner was Drew since neither of them had anyone else to pair up with. Juniper still remember the words Drew said to her loud and clear in her mind in their first biology lesson together.

"So who do you like?" Drew asked curiously while batting her eyelashes at an adorable classmate who just walked past.

Juniper pouted. "I don't like anyone."

"Lies, hon. Lies." Drew laughed loudly which irritated Juniper. "We're friends here, Junnie. You can tell me everything. I'll tell you everything too. If you're shy, I'll start first."

"Don't call me Junnie." Juniper narrowed her green eyes.

Drew smirked. "Alright, hon, but don't change the subject. Here we go. I like Luke." She admitted.

Juniper sighed. Luke Castellan is older than them and obviously not into Drew. However, it was almost like every girl in this school had a crush on him so no surprises there. Juniper wasn't attracted to Luke but she had to admit he is quite handsome.

"Luke's a cutie." Drew smiled. "Your turn! So who do you have a crush on?"

"I don't like anybody." Juniper insisted.

Drew rolled her eyes. "That's what they all say, hon. I don't bite, Juniper."

"I never even talked to you until today." Juniper reminded her.

"Friends always started off as strangers."

Juniper growled and muttered under her breath. "Fine. It's Grover."

"Oh, hon, you poor thing." Drew shook her head.

Juniper turned her head sharply. "Excuse me?"

"He obviously belongs to someone else, not you." Drew said. "Find another boy, he's not worth waiting for."

It was a simple statement. Juniper was pretty sure Drew don't even remember saying it but for some reason it stuck to her. Ha, she got Grover, didn't she? Grover loves her, doesn't he? He doesn't belong with somebody else. Juniper already claimed him and things are going to stay this way. Drew was wrong and she will always be wrong. So if Drew was totally wrong, why is that little statement stuck in her head?

* * *

Piper rubbed the mascara on her face. The mascara stayed on her face as if they were glued on. She sighed in frustration, these mascaras are so hard to get off. She needed to use some kind of special ointment to get rid of it. She could have simply gone with a normal kind but no, her mom made her wear these new mascara from her line to advertise it.

"Mr. Jackson!" She yelled. "Can I get out of this damn room? At least I can go back to my hotel room to get my suitcase. It's not easy spending days in the same dingy room of yours wearing a red-carpet dress."

"Piper." Jason pleaded weakly. "Don't yell. You're held hostage, you don't demand things when you're kidnapped. I watched movies when if people complain while held hostage, they get dumped to a crappier environment."

Piper rolled her eyes. "Screw that. Nothing can get worse than this."

"Actually, I think the sewers will. Leo's description of his stay at the sewers when he was young seemed pretty horrifying. Definitely worse than this."

"Well, it can't get worse for me anyway." Piper said. "I can imagine more homely sewers."

"Stop!" A voice commanded. "Your door is unlocked. Come outside and we'll have a chat."

"Finally." Piper grumbled as she got onto her uncomfortable high heels and headed towards the door. The apartment Poseidon Jackson made them stayed in was dirty, dim and Piper could have sworn it was infested by rats a few years ago. She didn't like it but she didn't have a choice to leave. She was practically kidnapped when she was drunk. Jason wasn't in a much better state either. His blonde hair was messed up but in a cute way and he looked tired.

"What the hell?" Piper demanded.

Poseidon was wearing loose Hawaiin patterned shirt and a Bermuda Shorts. His hair was wet and tousled as if he either enjoyed a sunny day on the beautiful beaches of California or he just took a relaxing bath. Either way, it seemed as if he was taunting Piper since she was locked in the same jail cell for at least 72 hours without any facility to wash up.

Poseidon smiled pleasantly at them. "I hope you would forgive me for the state you're in at the moment. You see, this apartment doesn't exactly have a proper shower or sink. I never needed to use it."

"How did you wash up then?" Jason asked.

"Private villa." Mr. Jackson replied. "I would let you use it if we're alone there. Sadly, I have a few maids inside the villa which have loose lips. I can't risk anything."

"You could have at least got us into a hotel." Piper told him. "Or allowed us to stay in our own rooms. Put guards in front of our doors, I don't fricken care. This is ridiculous."

"I know, right?" Poseidon agreed. "California really isn't as good as Florida. I much prefer places like Miami."

"That wasn't my point." Piper was thrown back by the random comment of Percy's dad.

"Oh well." Poseidon shrugged. "I'm guessing and possibly even hoping you're itching for some answers?"

"I better get a damn good reason why I'm being kidnapped." Piper snarled. "I'm not even as famous as my dad. You want to kidnap somebody? Kidnap Jaden Smith, kidnap Kendall Jenner, not me. I can't even sell my autograph on Ebay for 10 dollars."

"Calm down, Pipes." Jason rubbed his hands gently on her arm which for some reason made Piper's heart skip a beat and relaxed at the same time.

"Exactly, calm down." Poseidon said smoothly and patted towards two chair who are close to be broken. "Sit down."

"Is it safe?" Jason frowned.

"Very." Poseidon assured them without taking no gestures to sit down himself.

Warily, both teenagers sat down as their chairs creaked almost in unison. Both of them held onto the edge of the chair tightly hoping not to fall if it breaks down.

"You do know that I used to hang out with Hades and..your dad." Poseidon nodded towards Jason. "Like way back, way back in high school. I don't even look them in the eye anymore."

"Yeah.." Jason said while Piper looked confused. Nonetheless, Poseidon beamed at Jason and seemed to not be getting Piper's confusion at all.

"I'm not going to go into much details because what's the past should stay in the past. I'm just going to make this brief and clear but you're not going anywhere since I have to make sure everything goes as planned. Hades is gone, there's two left - me and Zeus. I know it won't be long until we fall. We both know somebody is after us. We were a pact in elementary, middle and most of high school, not everybody liked us. The past shouldn't be revisited and I'm making sure it won't. However, we should learn from the past. The closest people can betray you in the end of the day. I know that from personal experience." Piper could have sworn he gave a slight glare at Jason as if it's his fault but continued.

"The only person you can trust is yourself. It's a cruel world out there, nothing is like what it seems. You might have a seemingly perfect life planned out but life will always throw surprises at you. You can do nothing but brace yourself for these unexpected times. Jason, you, Percy and Hades' son…- Nico, is it? - are strong together. I'm not saying like if you guys somehow bonded, you'll get supernatural powers but you hold power stronger than you think. What we did as your parents was set you on that path. It wasn't intended but it was planned by the fates. There are times you can solve the mystery yourself but this time, you can't. I can't give you all the answers but you can find it out. Nobody holds the key to every single mystery in the world."

Piper rubbed her eyes gingerly. "That's deep. I didn't get half of it."

"What do you mean?" Jason asked.

"I'm saying you should trust your instincts, your heart, your mind but nothing else. You're not far from the answer but be prepared for everything."

"Why didn't you tell us in New York?" Piper asked. "It's not that hard. We always go to Percy's house. You can maybe come home when we're around and ask us to stay behind or something."

Poseidon laughed. "You sound like Percy. The thing is, I can't tell you anything in New York. New York is full of spies. You can't even tell a lie without at least five people knowing about it. Besides, there's more to that so I kidnapped you. I won't have the time to tell you everything in New York. I may not have the key to your burning questions like who's the shooter and why is he going around shooting people but I know other things that might help you. The past is very important and you have to study it well to know the shooter's motives and eventually, find the identity and stop him or her. I can't reveal too much myself but you can obviously find the answers yourself."

"Okay." Jason nodded. "How are we going to do that?"

"There's a reason you're in Malibu." Poseidon started.

"Malibu?" Piper gasped. "Oh my god. My family owns a mansion here! Why didn't you tell me earlier? I could have gone there and actually enjoy life instead of being stuck here."

"Exactly." Poseidon sighed. "If you're in your mansion, your family would figure out your location and then your friends, then everybody. We don't want people to know where you are so you stayed here."

"If they don't know where we are, what excuse did you tell my friends and family so they aren't worrying about us?" Jason asked thoughtfully. "Knowing my mom, she'll be fretting about where I am unless I have a really realistic explanation. Last time I went to a sleepover at Leo's house, she made me take a picture of Leo and me together proving that I'm not somewhere else with other people and a picture of Leo's room to make sure I am there. On top of that, she calls me every hour to see how things are going."

"Simple." Poseidon smiled, it was the type of smile that wasn't exactly assuring and gave Jason and Piper chills. "Everything has been taken care of. You have nothing to worry about. They're fine and you're fine."

"I don't like the look of it." Piper muttered. "But give me the reason we're in Malibu."

"Well, this very apartment belongs to my uncle. When I was 7, my uncle got killed by a drunk driver leaving this house for me. Technically, I was too young to be legal to inherit anything like a house so he left it for my parents but clearly stated in his will that it's for me and it's my choice whether my parents can reside in it or not. My parents didn't really mind as they believed strongly in letting myself having my own private space so I was allowed to go here whenever I want as a teenager as long as I tell them where I am. To keep track of me, they rented a house nearby just in case."

"Wait, weren't you a student in Goode High? That's in New York, not Malibu." Jason pointed out.

"Everybody in Goode High is well-off." Poseidon explained. "My family is rich. They're able to afford private helicopters so our pilot can fly us over here during the weekends. Hey! Don't look at me like that! It's not like your families aren't rich and Piper, your family does own a private helicopter. Anyway, I became pretty attached to this place. I kept everything I didn't want my parents to see or basically everything I wanted to keep a secret about here."

"Does Percy know about this place?" Piper asked curiously.

Poseidon frowned. "No. He doesn't need to know this and don't tell him anything. Look guys, I have to catch a flight back to New York quickly as I have to arrive by tonight. However, you guys can stay here. Take your time, I have everything under control. There is cell service and wifi here but I strongly advice you not to use it or your friends and family will be pretty surprised and you're doing the explaining. By the way, they won't believe it if you tell them I kidnapped you. You can look through anything here and you're welcome to just live here. There's plenty of food in the kitchen, I stocked up a lot of stuff in the fridge. There's movies in that cupboard and go ahead if you want to use the TV, I'm sure it's working. I got those hotel toothbrush and toothpaste in the bathroom and there should be shampoo and soap. Sorry, Piper, I don't think there's conditioner."

"How about our clothing?" Piper protested.

Poseidon offered. "If you want, I probably left a few of my old college t-shirts and stuff in my wardrobe but I don't think you'll want to wear it."

No thanks, Piper said in her head but didn't want to hurt Percy's dad's feeling in any way so she stopped herself from saying it out loud. She can't believe Poseidon had the nerve to kidnap her, at least he seems pretty decent and seems to have everything around.

"It's a pretty small apartment." Poseidon continued. "You should be able to find your way easily. The room I locked you guys in is the spare room, there's a kitchen, bathroom, my bedroom and this, the living room. I really have to go now so enjoy yourselves! If you need anything, call me. My number is on the fridge."

"Thanks!" Jason called politely. To be honest, he didn't know why he is thanking him. Thank you for kidnapping me? Thank you for getting me off school for however days I'm staying here? Thank you for leaving me and Piper alone here?

"You're welcome." Poseidon answered as he stepped outside of the apartment.

"Let's go check out this place." Jason decided as he and Piper split up around the place.

"Sardines." Piper commented looking through the refrigerator. "Shrimp. Crab. Why are they all seafood? We can't live like this."

"The TV is flickering, it doesn't work." Jason groaned.

"These clothing are so out of date." Piper complained. "Not that I care but not even I would wear these stuff. First of all, I swear there are mothballs on these shirts and second of all, there are tons of papparazis in Malibu. I can't be spotted looking like a tramp around here, my mom would kill me."

"There's barely any shampoo or soap left." Jason grumbled. "Besides, I don't even see any toothpaste or toothbrushes."

"Okay, this place stinks." Piper moaned.

"So, what do we do now?" Jason asked, looking at her as if she held the answer to everything.

Piper wondered for a few minutes and smirked. "Go to my mansion, of course."

* * *

"Nothing's the same without Beckendorf." Nyssa complained to nobody in particular.

It was a typical after school woodshop club meeting. Ever since their captain Beckendorf died two years ago, everybody just grumbles about how much they missed him and what they will be doing if he's around. It became a pretty depressing sight and some people wanted to quit but realize they needed extra curricular activity points so they stayed. Most people in this club are really good with building mechanical things, identify machines, basically anything to do with the subject. Although they're talented in that area, most of them are rubbish in other areas. Woodshop club is the only place they can get the points needed.

"I know!" Jake Mason agreed. "And look at me! Covered in a full body cast and in a wheelchair because of that fire accident we had last week. If Beckendorf was around, we won't even have that accident."

Leo dragged his body to his usual spot and started on his project. He didn't exactly looked forward to the activity since it was all if-Beckendorf-was-here-we-would-have-been… talks. He didn't like it at all. He wanted the club to be active and happy. He wanted to have parties all the time and not gain the reputation of being the most sadistic club in school which it is gaining. "Come on! It's the party house! Beckendorf won't be proud of us if we're still mourning over him years after his death."

"So you're saying you don't care he died?" Christopher gasped. "Leo! Respect please!"

"I care!" Leo said defensively. "I just don't think we should still mope about."

It was practically the same conversation for weeks. The whole group being sort of mad at Leo for 'not caring about Beckendorf's death' although it was two years ago. Leo had a hunch that these people are more miserable about Beckendorf's death than Beckendorf's family. It didn't make sense to him. Sure, that guy's dead and everybody should be sad but these people got to move on. Beckendorf will have to die at some stage of his life, it's just that his was tragically short.

"Why won't my model work?" Harley moaned in frustration. "I have been working on it for weeks! Everything was perfect!"

"This sucks." Nyssa shook her head. "Ever since Beckendorf died, like nothing works anymore! No matter how hard we try assembling our pieces, calculating everything precisely and making sure there are no flaws, it just doesn't work. It's like his death placed a curse on us or something."

Christopher's eyes lit up swiftly. "That's it, Nys! That's it! We are suffering from a curse!"

"Don't be silly." Leo laughed uneasily. "There's no such thing as curses. Besides, my little torch contraption worked."

"That was nothing." Nyssa waved her hands dismissively. "I meant something huge. Something that would bring us the glory we had when Beckendorf was around."

Harley whimpered softly. "I don't like curses." Although he was a freshman, he had the mental mind of a timid 7 year old. Except when it came to building things, he is an absolute genius.

Suddenly, the door opened. When Beckendorf was around, it wasn't 'suddenly' since the club was still popular. Now, nobody ever comes in other than the members itself. Catriona Fontaine walked inside as she frowned at the place.

"Ew, how the hell do you work here?" She muttered.

"Cat." Nyssa nodded rather curtly. "What brings you here?"

"Piper's not here." Leo told her. "She's still in LA or something."

"I know." Cat said. "I'm doing a memorial for the victims of the Shooting and basically, I'd like to know more about Beckendorf since I didn't really know him that well."

"Oh god, here we go." Leo muttered quietly. This is so going to get everybody moaning about Beckendorf saying how much they missed him again.

Christopher raised his eyebrows. "If you don't know him that well, why are you doing a memorial for him then? Why don't you leave it to us?"

"That would be nice." Cat started. "but, it's kind of a collaboration. You know what I mean? I have to do it."

Leo was pretty sure nobody in the group got what she meant but nobody had the heart to ask. "Fine, what do you want to know about him?" Nyssa questioned.

"Oh, just about everything you know about him."

"That's going to take hours." Harley commented.

"I have time."

Leo sworn he saw Nyssa's expression harden. She seemed like she had a grudge against Cat or simply didn't like actually elaborating on Beckendorf.

"You may but we're busy." Nyssa told her. "Now's not a good time."

"Nyssa…" Leo glanced at her asking her silently 'what's going on'. "I'm sure it's fine. We aren't really doing anything productive anyway."

"Come on!" Cat insisted. "It won't take too long, I'm sure."

"Fine." Nyssa said. "You know what? Harley, Jake and Christopher will tell you everything. Leo, come with me. I have something to show you."

"Okay." Leo shrugged as he followed her into a room.

"What are you doing?" Nyssa hissed. "Stop taking her side!"

"What do you mean?" Leo frowned. "You're the one being all defensive as if she pissed you off or something."

"Why the hell is she asking about Beckendorf?" Nyssa shot back. "It's so..weird!"

"And still not getting over him isn't? There isn't a club meeting I've been to where you haven't complained about his death." Leo told her.

Nyssa sighed as she sat down. "God. I really am going to be telling you, am I? I can't believe it's you I'm telling."

"What?" Leo cried impatiently. "Don't talk to yourself."

Nyssa's head turned glumly around the room. "I probably will never get over Beckendorf. He's my first crush. In fact, I'm guessing he probably still is. He obviously didn't like me back with Silena around. He doesn't even know that I liked him. Silena was gorgeous and just so..kind, oh god, I can't even hate her. It's like you really want to hate somebody but it's almost impossible."

"There's other guys out there." Leo suggested awkwardly. He's never good at giving advice, especially ones to do with relationship. He never even been in a relationship.

Nyssa shook her head, her eyes were oddly chilly. "Sure, but he's my first crush. You never get away from your first crush. They're always special in a way that even if you don't feel the same anymore, you kind of do. He's like the shadow following me everywhere but also reminding me at the same time, he can never be mines. I really don't have anything against Cat. I barely know her, but she is like Silena. If people can be separated in genres, they'll be in the same group. One of them already hurt me indirectly and unintentionally. It's silly, I guess but I really don't want to be acquainted with any more of them. What if they hurt me again?"

"Hurt you?" Leo raised his eyebrows. "Beckendorf's dead so you got to have another boy you like to be hurt again."

"Will." Nyssa whispered. "He's cute and Cat does seem to be pretty good friends with him. You know the drill. They start off as friends. Quoting 'just friends'. Then they realize they have feelings for each other, they date and end up getting married. It's like set up by fates and I'm just on the side going 'what the hell?'

Leo rolled his eyes. "You're over-thinking it."

Nyssa laughed harshly. "Really? Really? I know you, Leo. You don't exactly have the fairytale love story either. Don't you want Reyna? Aren't you scared she already fell for somebody else? Namely, your best friend Jason? It's complicated, isn't it? You don't want to hurt either one of them. Let's make the situation worse, shall we? This love triangle - or whatever you call it - isn't done yet. Your best friend Jason seems to be getting with Piper pretty well and Piper made it good with Sky who's now..what? Unconcious? Life is so damn annoying you just want to punch it in the face."

Leo felt like he have been punched in the face. He couldn't deny it, what Nyssa said was true. Besides, that wasn't it. This whole romance isn't enough. His life has been messed up ever since his mother passed away. It wasn't even her time yet. He knew his mother took cocaine but even now, he never thought it actually took her life away. Obviously, he didn't blame his mother for her death. He blamed the dealers, he blamed whoever that sold his mother that drug. She has been taking it for years, there had to be something wrong with that particular batch which made her so sick she died. He knew her illness had start building up since high school but he refused to believe it until it was really reality. He could blame his friend's parents, Jason's dad, Piper's mom, all the popular kids back in his mom's high school days who pressured her into taking the drug in the first place. However, he didn't. He doesn't like holding grudges against his friend's parents as he felt it might torn his friendship with his friends itself.

When his mother died, Leo thought it was the worse thing that could happen. Just like those movies when you say 'it can't get possibly worse!' and then it starts raining or some even more disastrous events happen, Leo's life changed completely and it became shittier. None of his 'loving' relatives took him in as quoting them 'he was too much of a burden!' or 'we don't have enough money to support him!' or even 'it's always windy here. I'm afraid he can't adjust to the climate'. Like what kind of an excuse is that? They just obviously don't like him. He was forced to stay in adoption house and trust him, it was terrible. He stayed in a wind-down little building, sharing a tiny room with at least 10 homeless scrawny kids just like him, eating what the orphanage owners called marsh potatoes almost everyday (if you're good, you might have one of those 'candies' that taste absolutely revolting!), being taught in the same class with people aging from 2 years old to 15 years old and of course, entertain the orphanage owners. The owners of the adoption house felt like they needed some kind of fun on every Saturday afternoon so they scheduled every kid to perform their talent. It was actually okay, seeing what other kids can do except Leo had nothing. He can sing just like a dying fetus, dance like a spastic frog, do gymnastics just like a hippo and can play instruments as well as a blind chicken. He tried entertaining everybody with his humor calling himself a comedian but nobody got his sense of humor. Everybody was too serious. Every Saturday, he got to scrub the toilets for being the least talented kid.

He had enough of the adoption house. He just isn't suited to the conditions he was confined in. He tried running away, twice. The first time, he was caught the police two weeks later and dragged back to the stinking orphanage. The second time, he was missing for a month and actually made it in Canada when this bratty toddler found him and somehow recognized him from a wanted poster which for some reason was in Canada and caught him. How embarrassing. A toddler of all people. Anyway, he was stuck in the same orphanage and as a punishment for being naughty, he got to scrub the toilet everyday.

Soon enough, his father Hephaestus showed up at the orphanage and adopted Leo. Leo was totally pissed off with him for ignoring him and letting his life become even crappier when his mother died for like two days but realized he couldn't go on being mad forever. Without his dad, he would still be stuck in the adoption home scrubbing toilets. Besides, his dad had his own reasons not to adopt him sooner and Leo respected that. They moved to New York and so that's where Leo is now.

Yeah, his life is finally becoming normal, isn't it? If there's anything Leo learnt, that would be the fact his life would never be like everybody else. You might be expecting a nice father-son bond by now with the two of them going on fishing trips, hiking trips pretty often, but as Hephaestus never creased to remind Leo, he is not good with actual human beings. Both father and son enjoyed working with machines and found it easier to bond that way but really, you get closer to whatever you're building than the person next to you. They have that kind of a relationship where they regarded each other more like a buddy than a father or son. Even as a buddy, they don't tell each other everything though. It's kind of strain, they both held secrets away from one another. A typical conversation between them would be:

Hephaestus: How's school?

Leo: Good. How's work?

Hephaestus: Fine. What would you like for dinner?

Leo: Anything's good, but maybe beef patties?

Hephaestus: Sure. I'll make them now.

It wasn't what Leo expected and probably wanted but that's what he had now. All he could do is tell himself that it could be worse and he could still be stuck in the orphanage.

"Leo?" Nyssa shook him gently. "Are you alright."

"Yeah. Yeah." Leo blinked. Being lost in thoughts is something he hated being caught doing but found himself doing occasionally. "I'm fine."

"I'm going back. I'll leave you here." Nyssa paused. "Just tell me if something's wrong. Both of our lives are so fucked up I'm sure we can help each other."

"Sure." Leo nodded rather robotically. "See you."

As Nyssa left the room, Leo couldn't help but thinking about his mom. Why didn't his mom stop using cocaine? It's addictive but there got to be some rehab for people who want to quit. Then it hit Leo. She liked it. He remembered some experts who came to Goode High a few years ago to persuade the teens to refuse drugs.

"Why don't people stop taking cocaine?" Leo asked. He was especially interested in this Class A drug due to his mom.

The expert smiled. "Ah, cocaine. Well, for starters, some people tried it once maybe out of curiosity or peer pressure and get hooked up on it. Even if you tried it once, it hooks you in. You would want more. It makes you feel good. You feel high. You forget your trouble and pains. It's the best feeling you ever felt, but that's momentarily. The side effects coming piling in just after and its not pretty. It's not worth that moment of pure bliss. You won't want to stop because you wanted to feel that feeling again. It's out of the world and nothing can make you feel the same other than cocaine."

"Does it really make you feel that..amazing?" Leo asked again. Now, Leo wonder what kind of lies his mother is hiding and what kind of guilt she's covering that she wanted to become so happy, she'll forget about it. Leo had quite a few things in mind he wanted to forget.

The expert hesitated. "To be honest, yes, but it's not worth it. Don't take it. One snort can be the beginning of a irreviserable consequence."

"Don't worry." Leo assured the expert. "I won't. I'm just curious."

That was a few years ago, hen he was simply curious about the subject. Now, he wasn't so sure. He's still curious about it but maybe too curious. What made his mom like it so much? Why can't he try just a bit of it? It couldn't be that bad.

* * *

**AN: omg, I'm so sorry! I have been updating on Thursdays for a while but I couldn't yesterday since I was really busy preparing my friend's surprise birthday party! Don't worry, I'm still going to update on Thursdays! **

**I realized I'm starting to write more and more...is that a good thing? (this is either the longest chapter I written or one of the longest) And here is a big chunk of Leo, I find him to be one of the most interesting characters to write about since he can be insecure and sort of easily persuaded but strong and funny at the same time. **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	32. Clues

**"This is New York, nothing is easy." ~ Zeus Grace**

* * *

"No kisses!" Leo cried. "What kind of a date is that?"

"At least they seem to be getting along pretty well." Reyna noticed.

Hazel eyed the video and shook her head. "Guys, is this right? Firstly, we set them up on a 'date' and they weren't exactly thrilled about it. Well, Annabeth wasn't anyway. Percy is probably thanking us but neither of them know Leo placed a secret camera to spy on them."

"Yeah." Frank agreed. "It's kind of mean to both of them."

"Well, not really mean." Hazel stated. "More like rude."

Frank didn't understand the difference between 'mean' and 'rude but agreed anyway.

"Let's ask Percy how was it." Reyna suggested. "It'll be fun if he exaggerated it a lot since we know the truth."

"Yeah, nobody tell him about the camera though." Leo said quickly.

As Reyna took her phone to call Percy, the door opened.

"Hey guys!"

"Ah! Percy!" Leo screamed quickly shutting the lid down.

"Percy!" Frank looked surprised. "We..weren't expecting you!"

"Are you guys watching porn or something?" Percy frowned. "Why did Leo shut his laptop screen so quickly? Is there something you don't want me to see?"

"Porn?" Reyna repeated laughing. "No way!"

Hazel looked pretty mortified that Percy thought she might even be looking at that sort of thing. "No! No!"

"It's a secret." Leo said. "Like FBI worthy. Obama might send people after us if it leaks."

"Alright." Percy shrugged as if the answer was 'oh, it's just maths homework. You can't copy off us'.

Hazel smiled. "So how was it with Annabeth?"

"Fine." Percy replied. "Nothing much. She was telling me about her life and stuff. It's okay, I guess."

"No couple sort of things?" Reyna prompted him. "Like cuddling? Kissing? Or just holding hands?"

Percy shook his head. "Nah, it was awkward though."

"I can imagine." Frank said. "As my grandmother used to say-"

"No, Frank." Reyna said firmly. "I don't care what your grandmother says."

"Bu-but, it might actually be useful!" Frank protested. "She makes me memorize all those ancient chinese sayings."

"And I don't want to hear it."

"Okay." Frank muttered. It was those types of 'okay' he act like everything's alright but really, he felt insulted Reyna didn't want to hear anything from him. He is usually those really shy guys who would barely talk but when he did, it seemed like people don't even want to hear him. He knew it was just Reyna being herself but it wasn't really helping.

* * *

"Your mansion is amazing!" Jason complimented. "It's like those you see off movies."

Piper laughed. "You should see the ones own by actual millionaires."

"Would anybody notice we're here?" Jason asked. "I mean, Percy's dad made it pretty clear we're not to be seen."

"I don't think so." Piper told him. "My family doesn't usually have anybody here unless it's holiday to which sometimes, my family comes over for a little vacation. You should never be sure though. We could have creepers, stalkers, reporters, basically anybody bursting through the doors."

"Well, that's..reassuring."

"Don't worry." Piper smiled. "Everything will be fine. Technically, you can just go inside any toilets or anything to change. You can borrow my cousin's things. I think he left a few clothing before he went to Amsterdam in the toilet next to the kitchen. I mean, the kitchen on this floor."

"How many kitchens do you even have?"

"Uh..well, if you mean big as in those normal sized ones, there'll be three but we have like mini bars, freezers, boxes of food around." Piper replied.

Jason shook his head. "The life of a celebrity who owns a freaking mansion. I'll probably be able to find that bathroom."

"Bathroom." Piper giggled. "Are you British or something?"

"No, why?"

"I think Americans say toilet." Piper wondered. "I always though bathroom is used by British people."

"Then how about washrooms? Or water closet?" Jason pointed out.

Piper shrugged. "I'm not sure. Australians?"

Jason laughed. "Alright. So we can wash up and go back to Percy's dad's apartment?"

"I guess so. Won't hurt if I bring some quality food, internet connector or something, plugs, and all those nessicity. Ooh, and if you need anything, feel free to press those white buttons you see around the house. It's like an intercom. We're suppose to use it to call our butler when we stay here but yeah, I can hear you if you use it."

Jason took one last glance at Piper who's heading upstairs to her room and started to go search for the bathroom..or toilet Piper's cousin left his clothes in. "Butler." He muttered. "Intercom."

* * *

"Is your husband home?" Leo knocked on Brad Marshall's door for the second time to find his wife, Lilah Marshall answering.

Lilah Marshall rolled her eyes. "Oh, it's you again. What survey do you have installed for me now?"

"It's the second part of our survey, ma'am. We'll need your husband to answer it." Leo answered as professionally as he can. "It's important, please."

"He's home." Mrs. Marshall shrugged. "Ryan's at his tantrum again. I'll tell him to come out after he calmed him now. I am impossible at calming babies."

"I can wait." Leo grinned. He felt like he needed to assure Mr. Marshall's wife somehow to make her feel that Leo is safe and won't harm them in any way.

"Brad?" Lilah Marshall called. "This kid wants to see you!"

"Who is it?" Mr. Marshall yelled back. "Oh god, Ryan, shut up! What do you want? Your sippy cup? Crackers? Thomas the Train?"

"I don't know.." Mrs. Marshall's voice faltered.

Leo prompted her. "Leo."

"Leo!" Mrs. Marshall shouted.

"Wait!" Brad Marshall sighed. "A moment. Or Lilah, can you get him to sleep?"

"You know I'm not good with babies!" Lilah stomped her foot in frustration. "But fine. Better be quick."

"What do you want, kid?" Dr. Marshall exchanged places with his wife and sighed. "As you can probably tell, it's not exactly the best time."

"How much is it?" Leo whispered softly making sure nobody can hear him.

"What?" Brad Marshall frowned. "Oh god. You mean you want to get that, do you? How do you know I'm a dealer?"

Leo smirked. "How else do you repay your debts so quickly? I did a school survey on your wife a few weeks back and she accidentally revealed that information to me. Don't worry, it's confidential. Why would I tell anyone when I'm buying it from you anyway?"

"Fair point." Dr. Marshall nodded. "It's going to cost, boy. These things aren't exactly cheap. 50 dollars."

"Shit." Leo shook his head. Wow, they really aren't kidding when they say it's expensive.

"40?" Dr. Marshall offered. "These are premium."

"Premium?" Leo repeated. He didn't know cocaine can be premium. Perhaps it was a lie since he is a first-timer or there are somehow premium cocaine but he didn't question. He didn't want to make a fool out of himself. "Is there any that aren't premium?"

"Sorry, kid. This place only sell those with class. If you want those cocaine that I don't even know is real or not, go to the alleys. You're bound to find a few stoned kids there." Dr. Marshall replied. "Fine, last offer. 30."

"Deal." Leo nodded reluctantly as he took the cash out and handed it over.

* * *

"Bitch, that disguise makes you look like a retard." Poseidon laughed as Zeus took a seat next to him. "Actually, you could do that just fine without the disguise!"

"Shut up." Zeus scowled under his fake mustache. "I seriously don't want to be seen with you without any costumes."

"Oh, I don't want to be seen next to you either. It'll be like the beauty and the beast. I'm the beauty and you're the beast." Poseidon taunted him.

"That's right." Zeus agreed. "I'm the guy and you're the princess who's crazy enough to fall in love with an ugly creature."

"So you admit you're ugly."

"Get lost." Zeus snapped. "You called me to meet you. Tell me what you want to tell me so we can both get out of each other's face and avoid each other for the next century."

"You wanted to meet me too. We both know - Hades too - that it won't be the last of us since high school. You can't diminish something like what we had before it ended. Now that Hades is dead, we can't hide anymore. Somebody's out there for us. They're coming for us. We can't pretend it's nothing anymore. They could harm our families."

"Yes, Captain Obvious." Zeus rolled his eyes. "And what can we do about it? Hades is just as strong as us and he's fallen. If he can die like that, the thing is out of our control. It's not like our bond can make all problems disappear. This is New York, nothing is easy."

Poseidon raised his eyebrows. "So you're just going to sit there counting for your days to be over? Are you not even going to try to stop this? It can save your life!"

"My life is already done." Zeus laughed rather strangely. "What else is there to do anymore? I've done them all. You know that metaphor? Life is just like a roller coaster with all the ups and downs? Well, my roller coaster ride is finished. There's no more tracks to go but for some reason, I'm still alive. There's nothing else to do. I'm just watching every day pass. There's nothing special anymore, it's all predictable."

"Oh really?" Poseidon challenged. "Then do you know the winning ticket for tonight's lottery? No! Buy the lottery ticket and you'll feel the suspense watching the lottery show tonight."

Zeus shook his head. "I don't care about that but you're right. Actually, there's one more track for me to go. I'm watching the story unfold itself right now. It's amusing watching other people fall into the traps and lies I put them into."

"What is it?" Poseidon whispered softly.

Zeus waved his hands around majestically. "Oh, nothing you need to know about. It's no biggie anyway. Kind of like watching my daughter trying to get an A but seriously, she can never do that. What a disgrace. **(AN: haha, Thalia Grace..disgrace….okay, I'm probably the only one who laughed at that)** It's not that though, but something equivalent in the minority of it."

"That's not worth watching." Poseidon sniffed.

Zeus smirked. "You'll be surprised by it actually. It might even affect you but I don't really care. I mean, what do those teenagers say again? Carpe Diem? Momento Mori? Ah, yes. Yolo! Yes, Poseidon, yolo! You only live once. I'm doing whatever I want to do in my life just for fun. It's amazing how greatly it affects people. It's like watching a movie, but that movie is so good it can win every Oscars award. It's realistic and you're actually living in it."

"What the fuck?" Poseidon bursted into laughters again. "Yolo? What are you going to talk about now? The fact you have swag?"

"Fuck off." Zeus growled. "I'm trying to make a serious point and you're making it sound like a joke."

"To me it is kind of like a joke." Poseidon's sea green eyes glittered mischievously. "No offense but really, everything you say is a joke. Actually, scrape that. You are a joke."

"You called this meeting. Sure, I had a few things I would like to tell you but still, I wouldn't if you somehow got my phone number and called me." Zeus reminded him. "I think it would be more sufficient if we actually talk so we can get this over with sooner."

"I did talk." Poseidon said. "And I'm telling you that you shouldn't sit back and do nothing like you're planning to. I'm not going to watch you fall like Hades."

"Then fall alongside me." Zeus offered. "If I'm going to die anyway, feel free to die with me."

"My family needs me. I'm not going to go with you down to the Underworld. You can go to hell yourself. What do you think your family is going to think of you?"

"Well, Joan would probably cry but she'll get over it. I mean sure, it would be pretty tough if I'm gone especially when..well, none of your business but she'll cope. I'm sure she will. Thalia…Thalia will be fine. She doesn't even give a damn about me. She's in that teenage stage of her life where she's such a rebel she doesn't care about anything. She'll be okay. It's Jason which I'm most worried about if I am worried about anything. That poor boy finally got off coma to find out things aren't any simpler. He is still stuck in a web trying to find out who the Shooter is. Again, like Joan, he'll be fine though." Zeus answered.

* * *

"Where's Piper?" Nico asked urgently while banging on Percy's door at 11 pm. It was a terrible hour to wake somebody up especially when Percy was just comfortably in his bed almost falling asleep. Percy was tempted to leave his friend outside knocking impatiently but realized he couldn't go to sleep knowing somebody is stuck outside. Sighing, Percy got up and opened the door.

"What?" Percy asked, slightly annoyed. "You're lucky my dad's not home."

"Where's Piper?" Nico repeated as if it was super important.

"Huh?" Percy frowned. "Haven't you heard? She's staying in California with Jason for a while. Didn't she send you a text? It was something about..I don't know, normal celeb stuff? Why the sudden interest?"

Nico shook his head. "No..I never got any texts and nobody told me."

"Oh that's right." Percy said. "You practically locked yourself in your house for the past day without communicating with anybody."

"I was busy." Nico retorted defensively. "But she's not alone, is she?"

"Again, she's with Jason." Percy shook his head. "Really, you came all the way here, interrupted my sleep just to ask this stupid question you could have asked tomorrow morning?"

"Sorry!" Nico bowed his head, faced the ground and mumbled. "I swear, it's really important though. It's a good thing she has company but I don't know..Jason isn't that good. I mean, he's strong and he can protect Piper but it wasn't so long before Jason got back from his coma. He's probably still confused about everything."

Percy laughed. "Jason woke up in September. It's been quite a while and protect Piper? Why would anybody need to do that? She's a celebrity..well, sort of. She probably have more bodyguards than the bank my mom goes to."

"If I tell you something, can you promise to keep it a secret? As in, tell nobody type of secret? Not even your favorite toy or your cheesecake?"

"Sure." Percy shrugged. What kind of secret is it anyway? It can't be that bad. A kid like Nico can't possibly know something like when aliens are going to attack Earth.

"Remember the time Piper was knocked out in Halloween? I paid her one visit when she was in hospital. Being knocked out, she obviously didn't see me but Jason was there. I told him to shut up and he's nice and loyal, he probably didn't tell anyone. Anyway, I knew from a tip off my dad that Piper holds some kind of a clue to the big mystery we're living in. It can't be any more obvious at that time that Piper was holding the clue and I was right. I opened her fist - funny how nobody checked there - and found a piece of paper. I kept it of course and didn't show it to anyone. Jason probably has no clue."

"Yeah?" Percy raised his eyebrow. "Nico, you never crease to surprise me."

"That note is important." Nico stated. Percy thought it was a bit silly since it was pretty obvious by now the note had some huge role to play. "Piper needs to know. She could be in danger."

"In danger? Well, she's in another state. The danger won't really follow her all the way to the other side of America, would it? Who has the time to take a plane ride - not to mention pay for it too - just to get Piper into trouble?" Percy said, trying to persuade himself it's not really happening. To be honest, Percy isn't sure. From what has been happening lately, it's almost like anything can happen. Percy and Piper have that close bond where they think of and treat each other like siblings. They have their moments of arguing but at the end of the day, they care about each other deeply like they're related. Percy is like the big brother Piper never had and they're both protective of each other.

Nico shook his head. "Danger can follow you all the way to China if you go there. It's unavoidable especially in the society we live in. There's the internet, phone, pizza deliveries, you can never be safe."

"Wow, pizza deliveries." Percy chuckled. "I'm thinking of ordering a pizza tomorrow night, am I in danger?"

"Oh, you don't want to know about pizza deliveries." Nico said suppressing a smile at Percy's sarcasm. "My sister had enough of those."

"What does the note even say?"

Nico had a strange look on his face and suddenly, Percy didn't really want to know anymore. It was creepy. It's one of those situations, you know you're better off being ignorant in. "It's a note from my dad, not the person who assaulted Piper. He told me to open it after Halloween for the full effect to take place. The note states that he already knows he's dead, that's why he asked me to open it after Halloween. He knows he won't be around when I see the note. He knew he was going to die, yet he went away. "

"That must be..brave." Percy nodded, he didn't know what to say.

"Here, look at it yourself. Just don't tell anybody what you read on this note. It's confidential and seriously, people who tell are always the ones who get killed in the end."

Percy wanted to say something like 'dramatic' as he found that pretty hard to believe but he didn't. Instead, he took the note from Nico's hands and read it silently.

_Dear Nico,_

_I love writing letters and notes. You must have known that from all those stuff I left behind you probably found. Instead of telling you in person, a letter is more dangerous in a way. The fact that anybody can pick it up despite it being addressed to you creates the thrill of writing letters. I like thrills and I love dangerous stuff. Obviously, I don't want anybody but you, Nico, to read this letter but the fun begins when I leave this note and if anybody else but you read it. I don't want to just send it to you by mail or something. That's too easy. Anybody can do it. You have to find this yourself for the possible clues I might reveal later on in this letter._

Percy stopped. "Should I continue, Nico? I mean, it does say pretty clearly that he doesn't want anybody but you to read it."

"No, don't stop." Nico urged. "Read it." So Percy shrugged and kept on reading.

_Funny how I told you that there'll be something that Piper McLean contains which might help you while I still want you to search for this. I honestly don't even know what I'm suppose to think or do but oh well, whatever. Piper is your friend, isn't she? She is a very special person. Extremely important for things to play out. Sure, she's just your average daughter of a famous celebrity but it isn't her that people are after, it's her status, her role in society. She is probably the first person they're after. When she's gone, everything with crumble bit by bit. Nico, they are after her and that's what I'm going to tell you._

_Don't worry much about Piper though. There's always a weak link in the group but trust me, it's not Piper. She'll be fine. Even if she has been captured, she doesn't have to freak out. She won't be affected, it's her friends (yes, that might include you) that will be the victims. The Shooter - and anyone that might have something against you - have an odd way of working._

_This note isn't all about Piper. Well, it mostly is but I'll leave you with a couple of sentences that is focused on you. Watch out, son. It's not a pretty world out there are you are wanted by people. You, Percy and Jason. You guys are powerful, don't underestimate yourself. It's almost my time to join the Underworld so I see things better than most people. However, I'm not like everyone else. I'm not going to reveal everything to you. I can tell you that you guys couldn't split apart or have anything to tear you apart like what happened with me and their dads. That's what went wrong, well, it's one of the factors anyway. Nico, by the time you read this, I'm gone. I'm not living anymore, like how I'm not when you read the other notes or letters. I know I'm going to die soon and that's why I left you all these clues. It's your turn now and I can't really do anything to help you physically. Follow my clues, follow me and you will be avenging my death and bringing honor to our family. I promise you that, Nico._

_Love, Hades Di Angelo._

Percy gripped the note rather tightly. "It's about me too." He muttered hoarsely.

"That's why I want you to read it." Nico told him. "It affects us all. Everything happening to us is affecting the people around us too."

"Are you going to show Jason?"

"I would but he's in another state." Nico said. "I hope he's fine with Piper. They should be able to cope but I wish them luck anyways."

"Send it to them through email, text or messaging." Percy suggested.

"Nah." Nico shook his head. "My dad doesn't trust electronics, they're easy to hack. I'm not going to take that risk either."

* * *

**AN: Naughty Leo, going to buy cocaine? ;) I hope that part is okay...let's hope Leo won't actually go and take the cocaine, shall we? He is a very interesting character to write and Hades' letters...I think they're pretty appropriate and I love the idea of Hades hiding all these clues for Nico to find.**

**I'm so excited since my easter break starts next week and it's going to be for 2 weeks! ahah, okay, the awkward moment when I'm even more excited for April Fools Day than Easter itself... I don't know, I just love April Fools! Review or PM me your favourite pranks to prank my friends, family... I'd love to play more pranks on them! :P **

**One last note, do any of you watch Pretty Little Liars? And if you do, have you seen the finale of Season 3? asdfghjkl;, if you do please PM me! I'd love to discuss theories with you and fangirl over Spoby :') **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	33. Kaylee

**"Piper, the world isn't as black and white as it is. Most of the time, it's just a darker shade of gray or lighter shade." ~ Catriona Fontaine**

* * *

Leo fiddled with the bag of cocaine he bought the day before. He still haven't tried it and he didn't know when he will but there's one thing that he's certain of - and that day is going to be soon.

"Don't try it! Don't take drugs! The first day you take it, is the day you ruined your life." The expert said strongly. It convinced Leo long enough not take get drugs but it wasn't enough. Here he was with the packet he bought and it wasn't just weed or anything, it's cocaine. Cocaine, the King of all drugs. His life is pretty much already ruined, isn't it? Nobody can ruin it further, not even drugs.

Leo wanted to feel that sensational moment you're suppose to have while being high on drugs. It's probably his only way of feeling truly happy. Slowly, Leo opened the packet. His mind whirled around him as questions was thrown to him by himself. Did he really want to take this? Is it worth it? Should he take the risk?

"Stop." The expert commanded. "Tell yourself to stop if you feel tempted in anyway. You will not regret telling yourself one simple word - stop. It might seem easy but it is actually difficult at that moment. Nonetheless, you have to tell yourself to stop."

What does the expert know anyway? Well, he is an expert for a reason but Leo can name himself an expert on anything and insist to be called that name for people to actually think he's pro at something. He could easily print out a business card for himself saying stuff like 'Dr Leo Valdez, PHD' for people to think he's a professor but really he's not.

"How do I know?" The expert had been asked. He smiled as he answered. "It was high school, I'm still in Toronto and I had a friend who sells cocaine. He took cocaine and he was always..bliss. I'm obviously curious how it is especially when he always tells me how cocaine is like and it only sounded beneficial at that time. I finally decided to try it once when my friend offered it to me for free. It was sensational as promised. I loved it and gone addicted to it. In my late twenties, the effects turned worse. I had difficulty going to the toilet, I was often dizzy and sweating, my heart beat was irregular, I had stomach pain and my muscles were unusually weak. Later, I started to have hallucinations and muscle spasm. It was terrible. I wanted to stop taking drugs but I can't. I felt like I'm going to die. On top of that, I was close to being broke. Cocaine cost a fortune and I couldn't afford it with the simple job I had back then. In my twenties, I was always in debt but luckily my parents bailed me out. I didn't even tell them I was taking this horrible drug. I lied and told secrets to cover my tracks. Obviously, my symptoms became more and more evident. Even my parents who didn't see my often since I had my own apartment noticed changes in me. I was desperate not to let anybody know I'm taking drugs. I know my parents would be devastated if they knew and I didn't want it to happen. Instead, I finally got myself to visit a private doctor. I was sent to drug rehabs centers and eventually got rid of my addiction. The process is horrifying and was the worst time of my life. I'm here to tell you that it's better for you to not take coke at all than experience all the pain getting rid of the addiction that will kill you."

Peer pressure. Curiosity. That's why the expert took cocaine. That is kind of why Leo bought cocaine. He was curious why his mother took it and couldn't stop. However, now, Leo knew it's more than that. He wanted his pain to go away and cocaine is strong, it'll work. The expert didn't take coke to forget. What would he know?

Sure, Leo could drink alcohol instead of taking drugs to get all high and forget everything. Leo knew it'll work and he can become an alcoholic, it's more tolerable than drug-takers, but he won't feel what his mother felt. Somehow, Leo felt taking cocaine would create some connection between him and his mother.

"Is that cocaine?" Leo jumped as he saw his dad behind him. Shit. He's been caught. He haven't even tried it yet.

Leo quickly took the packet away. "I..I didn't even tried it yet. I was just looking."

Hephaestus sat down and fiddled with a few nails he's been holding and said nervously. "I don't know how to say this. You know I'm not good with..communicating but I have to tell you something. I'm not the type of person who would restrict you to doing what I want you to do. If you want, you can take that. It's your life, it's your choice. Really, I shouldn't be doing anything but I'm just surprised. Esperanza….she took cocaine too. That's why she's gone."

"I know." Leo nodded and admitted. "I haven't took this yet but I have this feeling that I'm somehow connected to my mom with this. She took it and I never tried it before. Was it something special?"

"It was peer pressure." Hephaestus sighed. "You know, don't you? Aphrodite. Tristan. Zeus. Ares. All drug users. I remember how it was before and the gap between the populars and non-populars was huge. Everybody wanted to fit in. Everybody wanted Aphrodite to just accept them. I didn't take cocaine and I was only one of the few who didn't. High school wasn't pretty for me. Even though I was friends with Aphrodite before, just because I didn't take drugs, I was in the bottom of the social ladder. Nobody can handle being in the bottom. It's worse than being invisible. You want to die. I wanted to. I tried killing myself that night Aphrodite - Aph…you don't need to know that, Leo."

"What happened that night with Piper's mom?" Leo asked softly. He knew he shouldn't be pressing his dad for more information. He was already struggling talking to his son but Leo felt like they actually connected that night. Leo was actually talking and learning something about his dad. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He quickly added after seeing his dad's pained expression.

"What's the point? Why do I need to keep it a secret?" Hephaestus mumbled to himself and said aloud. "It's fine. It's just me and Aphrodite were really good friends back in Elementary. It was ironic really. Her being the prettiest girl across town and me being the ugliest guy. However, we were best friends. The type who would keep each other company throughout the night just for the sake of it. In 3rd grade, I had a crush on her. It wasn't surprising, like 99% of the boys in our class did. Aphrodite never loved me back. She started dating that asshole Ares in 5th grade and it was painful seeing my crush and the class bully together. I hated Ares but loved Aphrodite. It was tough. We fell out in Middle School but I never stopped admiring Aphrodite from afar."

"How about mom?"

"Esperanza was amazing but we only started dating in University. Goode High is a big high school, I never really known her from Elementary to High School. I didn't know her properly until I found out there's somebody in the same college as me from the same high school." Hephaestus explained.

"Right, and on to your story about Aphrodite?" Leo prompted him.

"Okay um.. well, do you know that feeling? Like you use to know somebody so well and after you fallen out with them, it's funny how you still know practically everything about that person but you can't even talk to them anymore? Yeah, that was technically me. It hurt just being invisible and gone from her world but then in high school, I was teased and tormented by her. It wasn't big. Just your normal high school mean girls type of thing but it harmed me even more. What happened to us? We use to be such good friends and now I'm just her victim, a nobody to her. I don't know, Leo. I'm going off topic about Esperanza, you and cocaine but that's the truth."

* * *

"So Becky told the examiner that the piece was almost as loud as his outfit." Bianca laughed. "Oh my god, I know right? She is getting into so much trouble and she will never pass! I seriously can't believe she said that. You should seen her normally. She's always so nice and polite."

"Uh-huh." Nico said dully. He wasn't really listening but he found out a long time ago that all he had to do was say 'uh-huh' on queue at times, his sister would think he's actually paying attention.

Bianca smiled. "Oh god. And have I told you about Samantha? She just got the cutest boyfriend! He have like the poshest British accent ever, his green eyes are just so magical and his ruffled brown hair is gorgeous! She is so lucky to have landed him! Like everybody has a crush on him!"

"Uh-huh."

"They're going out on their first date tomorrow and Samantha's wearing this purple mini-skirt which looks stunning on her. He is going to fall head over heels for her! They make the best couple!"

"Uh-huh." Nico said again. He only caught a few words of what Bianca was saying but was already puzzled? So is Bianca jealous about this Samantha and her boyfriend or pleased? Sisters..they're so confusing.

"So what's up with you?" Bianca asked cheerfully.

"Uh-huh." Nico said carelessly not even thinking about what he said.

Bianca frowned. "Pardon?"

"What? Right." Nico muttered. "Uh..nothing much. Just same old."

"Have you been looking at anything in dad's study?" Bianca asked, her tone suddenly turning serious. "Did anything happen since I'm gone? Any deaths, accidents, just anything?"

"Nope." Nico lied. "Nothing and I didn't look at anything. I've been doing nothing but watching movies. I watched Zero Dark Thirty yesterday, Olympus Has Fallen today…"

"Thank god." Bianca said. "New York is a dangerous place. I'm glad everything's okay and you aren't sneaking around dad's things anymore. Who knows what happen if you still look through those files? They are top secret for a reason. With the cunning flare of New York, you wouldn't stand a chance if anything happens. How are you friends?"

"Good." Nico told her. "They're fine."

Bianca sighed. "I wish you would tell me more things. I'm sure there's at least some kind of crap happening in New York at the moment and I'm always clueless about it. I am your sister, you can tell me everything. That's why we call each other every week. We update each other on what's happening in both places."

Nico laughed mentally. Update each other on what's happening in both places. True, Bianca tells him about every single detail about her boarding school in Britain but Nico didn't pay attention, he didn't care. He doesn't need to know who used Bianca's toothbrush by mistake that morning. It's pointless and that's why he never bothered telling her anything.

"Right. Totally." Nico said emotionlessly.

"How's mom?"

Nico closed his eyes and heaved a breath. "Just fine. She's missing you a lot."

"Tell her I miss her to!" Bianca called. "Tell her I love her and tell her to pick up her phone. I can never get through to her for some reason. Is she still grieving about dad's death?"

"Yeah. She took it better when you're around. We're like strangers without you. We don't communicate or anything. She never comes out of her room." Nico told his sister.

Bianca said something barely audible that Nico didn't understand and said louder. "I knew this would happen. Nico, please don't let it get any worse. I'll come over the summer break but between now and then, you have to talk to her or something."

"I'll try." Nico didn't mean what he said. He just had too much to do. He had to find the rest of the letters his dad left him before somebody else did, he have mysteries like the Shooting to solve, he had to keep up with where his dad left on and he simply didn't have the time to spend an afternoon having tea with his mom or anything. Don't get him wrong, he loves his mom. He would do anything for her but this wasn't the right time. Besides, his mom isn't exactly thrilled to see him either. Well, not exactly. His mom loves him too but his mom has this crazy idea where she has to protect Nico and tries her best to appear bright and comforting around Nico. The thing is, lately after her husband's death, she couldn't be as happy as she was before. She needed time to grieve properly and probably shed some tears. She couldn't do this in front of Nico, she couldn't break down in front of him. To Maria Di Angelo, Nico is an innocent, harmless kid who needed to be shielded from all the ugly things in the world. She has to stay strong whenever Nico's around and would have to hide from him every time she knew she couldn't maintain her strength.

* * *

"Ugh, oh my god, she's such a wannabe." Cat complained over the phone. "Brittany is driving me crazy. She called me like millions of times yesterday just to ask if she should get a stupid purple dress. She said I have to approve it and all that kind of shit. I'm not like Regina George or any of the Plastics, I don't have to approve every fricken clothing you buy. And Chelsea, she won't stop asking me why I'm blowing them off to hang out with you instead. Like, get a life!"

Piper laughed uneasily. She knew she wasn't suppose to contact anybody in Los Angeles but it's not like Percy's dad would ever find out. What, does he watch over every single call made in America just to find if Piper or Jason made a call? Most definitely not. Besides, a single call won't harm. It's not even to anybody he would predict it's to. "I know right." She told her friend. Piper always wondered if Cat bitched about her to other people like what she did with her 'friends' to Piper. She didn't like being bitched about but found it rude to just ask Cat if she secretly hated her.

"Kaylee spend the whole night telling me about her dad's pay raise so they're moving into a 'better' house. Really, you should see the small apartment she lives now. Anything can be better than that." Cat rolled her eyes.

"If you don't really like them so much, why don't you just quit being friends with them?" Piper blurted. She quickly kept herself quiet. She realized how abrupt that sounded.

Cat laughed. "I can't ditch them after what happened to Drew on that boat ride. Without me, they're sure to tell."

"What exactly happened?"

"I shouldn't be telling you this but since you're my best friend, I'll tell you after you sworn to secrecy." Cat whispered as Piper sworn to the secrecy and promised not to tell anyone. "Okay, so we were all on the boat. It was really funny since we're all friends except for Drew. I mean, everybody thought we were all friends but seriously, we hate that bitch. There was like huge tension between us and that silly fool Ms. Indigo never figured out. She's so easy to push around I'm actually glad we got her. Anyway, from that moment we step inside the boat, I knew something was wrong. Drew seemed to know something is wrong too. Don't underestimate her, Pipes. She's dangerous. She knows a lot and I've been watching her for months. I'm beginning to actually know her."

"Does she know you're watching her?" Piper interrupted.

"No. She doesn't but she knows I know a great deal too, probably more than her with the help of my brother. She knows I'm not somebody to cross and that I probably know everything about her that she wanted to hide."

"Right." Piper nodded.

"So anyway, Kerri wanted to take a picture. No surprises there, she keep a scrapbook of pictures. One of her hobbies are photography, in fact you probably saw it from all those pictures she uploads on Facebook. The bit that shocked me a little was when she asked Drew to join in. It wasn't even because Ms. Indigo insisted Drew to be in it. Kerri asked her to join. When I made room for her to come into the picture, my mind raced. I knew why Kerri and Kaylee wanted her to take the picture. I was one step ahead as usual. Drew was going to be murdered right?"

"Yeah, but who killed her? Do you know?"

"Of course. It was simple. We were in the middle of the river. Although if you read the reports about Drew's death, the conclusion would probably be about some trained killers waited by the riverbank and somehow killed Drew. Impossible, really. My dad studied forensic science, my mom is a trained CIA agent. It's not possible. The only logical reason is that somebody in the raft killed Drew. Kerri can't, she was taking the photo. Ms. Indigo is too..soft-mannered to do anything like that. I knew I didn't."

"It was Kaylee." Piper realized.

"Exactly, but I know Kaylee. I knew she won't kill Drew without any other motives. She hated Drew but she won't kill her. After the ride, I took Kaylee aside and interrogated her. I was right, she took the knife and stabbed Drew. We made a deal. She told me her reasons and who she worked for and I'll help her cover for it. It worked. The other girls - who Kaylee didn't even tell - and everybody else believed the whole trained assassin waiting in the riverbank story. They thought Kaylee was innocent and she was fine. Kerri didn't see who killed Drew since it was all behind the backs. We convinced her that the assassin is like a ninja."

"So nobody saw it?"

Cat smiled. "Well, Ms. Indigo did actually, but she won't believe it. We help her by persuading her it's all hallucination and that Kaylee would never do such a thing. Finally, she believed us but was traumatized and thought it was New York which is making her so jumpy and left."

"Why did Kaylee do it?" Piper questioned.

"Do you think Kaylee's a bad person? I mean, murdering is a big crime. It's on the 10 commandments from the Bible. Thou shalt not kill."

"Uh yeah?"

"Piper, the world isn't as black and white as it is. Most of the time, it's just a darker shade of gray or lighter shade. Not everybody is as rich as you or me. Kaylee's family has been struggling for money for years. Her mother has to undergo some surgery to save her life and the family needed money. Kaylee was desperate, she would do anything to get the money for her mother's surgery. One day, she received a phone call saying they'll pay the amount of money for her mom's surgery and extra if she kills Drew. If you're as desperate as Kaylee, you would be willing to do it. Especially when it's to kill a person you hate to safe your mother. It's worth it if you see it in Kaylee's point of view. She agreed to do it and the caller gave her instructions. After she killed Drew, the caller left money at a place where Kaylee was instructed to find and got the money. Of course, her family is surprised to where she got the money so we just lied and say I donated it."

"Why didn't you donate it before?"

"The money for the surgery is an awful lot. I can't withdraw millions off our family bank account for my friend. My parents would kill me. They're as heartless as you can get, they don't care if a person's dying. They don't do charity work or anything like that." Cat shook her head. "Well, at least I'm glad her dad got a pay raise. Thanks to Kaylee's money, her mom survived and needed a bigger house to rest in anyway. Sometimes, one bad deed like what Kaylee did can lead to everything being right again."

* * *

Jason and Piper walked around Malibu in (thankfully) suitable clothing that everyday tourists would wear. They decided it's finally time to leave Piper's mansion behind to head for Percy's dad's apartment. With them, were four heavy suitcases filled with clothes, actually edible food, everyday needs, wifi connections, everything they thought they would need.

"Jason?" Something touched him as he jumped.

"What the hell?" He muttered and looked around. He saw nothing in broad daylight. "Piper, am I like hallucinating? Do you see somebody? Did you touch me?"

"No?" Piper frowned. "I just heard somebody calling your name."

Suddenly, both of them felt like they're grabbed by strong forces and they found themselves in a shady alley.

"Thalia?" Jason said, his blue eyes widened in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing." Thalia said. "Piper? Are you guys on your honeymoon or something?"

"Shut up!" Jason blushed. "We're not even going out."

Piper had the same quizzical expression she had on whenever she's confused. "I thought you were going to kidnap us."

Thalia smirked. "Good."

"Seriously though," Jason asked. "Why are you here?"

"Well, let's say I have business to do in California. How's everybody up in uptight New York? How's mom? How's dad?"

"I thought you were in..New York." Jason told her. "Somebody ate the portions of meals we left for you and your bed is slept."

"Ah, never mind that." Thalia shrugged. "You never actually saw me did you? That was my friend. Don't mind him, he's fine. I'm actually in California to do something for my college applications."

"Does mom or dad know?" Jason frowned.

"Nope!" Thalia smiled cheerfully. "The less they know the better."

"What business do you have to do anyway?" Jason questioned.

"Never you mind." Thalia waved her hands. "But it's in San Francisco. You shouldn't be here Jason..or Piper either. It's dangerous out in Cali."

"Then why are you here?"

"I'm fine." Thalia replied dismissively. "I'm okay but you're not. Go back to New York as soon as possible. You're safer home than anything. They won't hurt you there."

"California's not safe?" Piper sighed. "When will the world be okay again? There's nowhere on Earth that seems to be safe anymore."

"Go home." Thalia urged them. "Do whatever you have to do quickly and get your ass home."

* * *

"Funny kid, that Leo is." Brad Marshall smiled. "He kind of reminds me of myself. I like him."

Poseidon nodded. "Bought cocaine off you. Kind of sad, really, especially since his mother died because of those stuff. Fully understandable though."

"I hope he doesn't get into any more trouble." Dr. Marshall sighed. "Or that the Shooter won't do anything to harm him. Risky being friends with that son of a bastard Grace."

"Hard to say." Poseidon agreed. "And Piper. Have to say I really have nothing against her but I think they might. She's a easy target."

"How about that kid Annabeth? Used to be dating your son?" Dr. Marshall asked.

Poseidon smirked. "Annabeth? I don't give a fuck if anybody hurts her. My son can do so much better than that bitch."

"Ah..the Athena rivalry?" Dr. Marshall quickly picked up on. It's pretty well-known that Poseidon hated Athena since middle school. They were rivals on everything and ever since Athena beat him on a project (to this day, Poseidon still doesn't see what's so good about Athena's presentation on fucking olives), Poseidon swore to somehow destroy her.

"Don't say her name." Poseidon spat. "She can go to Hell."

"Alright. Calm down. Let's talk about Reyna. You know, the kid who just got out of coma last September."

"She's odd." Poseidon laughed. "And I like it. She's close to the answer yet so vulnerable. I like that kid."

"Vulnerable? She's like those ice queen bitches!" Dr. Marshall protested. "She's so damn strong and as tough as a nut."

"There's more than one layer to a person than what she appears to be." Poseidon replied airily. "When shit gets real, you'll start to see the real her. She can't be as strong as she hopes to be. There got to be something that will break her and I think everybody knows what that is."

"Jason?"

"Precisely." Poseidon smiled. "It's simple. If you want her, just get Jason."

Brad Marshall looked at his IPhone screen. "Crap. Sources say that Jason and Piper met Thalia Grace in California. This isn't good, is it?"

"No." Poseidon muttered gravely. "That's where she's been hiding all along? Fuck. I should have known this. Thalia is so unpredictable..I just don't know. She could be helping the Shooter or might just be somebody like us, finding the Shooter and stopping the game. Go to California will you, Brad? We'll stay in touch."

"Aye, captain." Dr. Marshall nodded solemnly as they parted ways.

* * *

**AN: Happy Early Easter, guys! What do you have planned for easter? I'm probably just going to go hunting for easter eggs with my little sister again :3 I hope the characters aren't too OCC here, I tried making them stay to their character as much... I hope it worked and you enjoyed this chapter though!**

**And omg, have you heard of the PLL spinoff, Ravenswood? I can't wait for that! **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	34. April Fools

**"The criminal is always the guy you least suspect it to be. Really, anyone should be on our list." ~ Percy Jackson**

* * *

Jason-

I bet you want to know who the Shooter is, don't you? Well, I'll help you. I'm love helping people so trust me. However, I cannot tell you my identity as the Shooter will target me next. I will, however, guide you step by step to your goal. Put this note in the bush north west to you so I can see you got the note.

-C

Jason frowned at the piece of note. "Piper, do you think it's legit?"

Piper shrugged. "We don't have any other clue though. I don't know but it might be pretty safe to give this a go."

"Clues? We haven't' even returned to Percy's dad's apartment yet. There might be lots of clues there." Jason reminded her. After meeting Thalia, Jason and Piper decided to have a small meal in a cafe and somehow went sightseeing around Malibu instead. None of them really wanted to return to the small apartment but know that they'll have to since Percy's dad made helping them seem very genuine. Besides, his son is friends with them. He won't want to hurt his own son, would he?

"True." Piper nodded. "You choose. You're like the leader around here."

"Seriously?" Jason laughed. "Without you, I won't even be here at all. You're the leader."

"Shut up, Sparky. Everybody knows you're like a born leader, just like Percy." Piper told him.

Jason pouted at the nickname 'Sparky'. Piper had called him that on several occasions and he still haven't' figured out why he is called 'Sparky'. If he ask Piper though, he had a feeling he would be called 'Sparky' more often. "Okay. I'll put this in the bush. I don't see any harm in doing it yet." He said as he advanced to place the note in the bush.

What can be done to the note anyway? Jason inspected the bush carefully and couldn't see anybody or anything. It's a normal bush. When Jason placed the note down and jogged to join Piper, the bush suddenly lit on flames.

"What!" Jason protested. "How-that's not possible! I'm like..so sure there's nobody there!"

Piper looked baffled as well but started giggling.

"What now?" He demanded.

"Nothing! It's just your reaction and everything."

Somebody joined Piper in laughing. "Yes Jason Grace, you were highly amusing."

"Excuse me?" Piper looked adamant as she turned to the voice. "Who are you?"

"That's not important but if you really have to know, I'll tell you later. By the way, I set that bush on fire so nobody can see the note and no traces of anything is left behind. Yes Jason, I can hide very well so you weren't able to see me."

"That's not possible!" Jason repeated.

"Everything is possible." A girl emerged from the shadows slowly and smirked. "I'm Chelsea and I know who you are."

"Creepy." Piper muttered under her breath. "But hey! Aren't you Chelsea Tait? Cat's friend?"

Chelsea sighed. "Glad you realized, Piper. Don't tell anyone I'm here or that you ever met me though. If you do, trust me, you wouldn't know who the Shooter is."

"Dude, if you go to our school and you know who it is, you should have told somebody." Jason urged. "Not keep it to yourself."

Chelsea shook her head. "If I told the police, I'll disappear the next day and so would the officers who know. The Shooter is powerful and all-knowing. Trust me, you don't want to cross the Shooter."

"Okay." Piper nodded but frowned slightly.

"So, do you want me to help you or not?" Chelsea cocked an eyebrow and looked at them.

"Uh..yeah..sure." Jason nodded. "So um..who's the Shooter?"

"Hey! And didn't you say you couldn't tell us who you are? Wait, what?" Piper questioned.

"Piper, how do you know the name 'Chelsea' isn't my real name? Do you even know my last name? How do you know the face you're seeing isn't a mask? You still can't find me. There's thousands of Chelseas in America, not to mention the whole world." Chelsea replied. "And Jason, I told you I'm not going to give you the answer straight away. I'm giving you clues."

"Then uh..give us some clues..please?" Jason asked.

"Okay." Chelsea shrugged. "Go to New York."

"What?" Piper said. "But Percy's dad told us to stay in Malibu."

"Ignore that." Chelsea laughed. "That's getting you nowhere. Go to New York. Your friends are close to finding the Shooter's identity and once you're there, it'll be revealed. The Shooter doesn't like revealing things to a few people at a time."

"Can we trust you?" Jason asked suspiciously.

"Oh, why not?" Chelsea challenged. "Do you know somebody else who can give you the answer? Poseidon Jackson just gave you extremely vague clues. It won't help even if you hit the truth there. You don't know anything about him or his past."

Neither Jason or Piper felt obliged to trust this stranger. It's weird how she knew their name and like everything about them but should they really trust her?

"Look, I'll even come on the same flight with you guys and pay for the tickets. Deal?" Chelsea rolled her eyes. "You seriously have nothing to lose here. If you really want to come back to Malibu later, I'll pay tickets for that too."

"Where do you get all this money from?" Piper raised her eyebrows.

"Same as you." Chelsea smiled. "Rich daddies."

* * *

BEEP!

Blocked Number

Chelsea can't be trusted. Watch your back, bitches.

Reyna looked at her text in confusion. What? Who's Chelsea anyway?

Lately, she has been spending more and more time with Mitchell discussing about Drew. They looked through her room and found nothing but designer clothing, make-up, magazines, stuff teenage girls would own. They looked through her diary but there was nothing but things similar to 'I went to the coffee shop today and I saw a cute boy. He had black hair and the prettiest brown eyes (not as pretty as mines, mind you) and it was electrifying. I'm pretty sure he's attracted to me too so I hope to see him around.' or 'OMG, my maths teacher (what the hell is his name anyway?) just gave me an 'F'. Fuck him. Seriously? I mean, just because I don't pay attention in class, skip a few lessons, and throw insults at that bastard sometimes doesn't mean I get an F! What's wrong with him?".

However, the lack of effort Drew gave in subjects like maths and statistics, she made up with efforts in classes like english and literature. According to her diaries, she has been getting straight A's and is on extremely good terms with the teacher. It's almost like the subjects meant more than her life to her. It's funny.

Turning Reyna's attention back to the text, she stared at it baffled for a few moments and immediately texted Annabeth.

Do you know somebody named Chelsea?

Reyna sighed. She doesn't even know who the text is from. It's from 'Blocked Number' and that kind of sucked.

BEEP!

Check the yearbook. Why? Is it even a student?

Reyna grabbed the yearbook from her shelf and texted Annabeth back.

Just got a random text from blocked number saying not to trust Chelsea and to watch my back. Don't ask me why I even got the text.

BEEP!

Okay. That's pretty weird.

Reyna agreed silently as she looked through the names in the annual Goode High yearbooks.

Chelsea Alister

Chelsea Brownings

Chelsea Janes

Chelsea McDonalds

Chelsea Tait

Chelsea Taylors

Chelsea Washington

Chelsea Woods

Seriously? Why does Chelsea have to be such a popular name? Besides, this Chelsea doesn't even have to be from Goode High. Any Chelseas across the globe. Wow, that's millions. Luckily, that name isn't Hannah or anything. That would really suck. There's like twenty Hannah's in Goode High.

* * *

"Paul Blofis!" Poseidon grinned as he noticed somebody he knew inside Starbucks.

"Poseidon." Mr. Blofis smiled weakly as he patted the seat next to him for Poseidon to sit on. It's awkward meeting your wife's ex-husband here although you're supposedly on good terms with him.

"Hey! How's it going, Blowfish?"

"It's Blofis." Mr. Blofis corrected him for like the millionth time. For some reason, Poseidon is really fond of blowfishes. "And it's good. Just got a lot of work to do, you?"

"Just fine." Poseidon nodded. "God, I like you Blowfish. I'm so glad Sally chose you as her wife instead of some other scrum bags."

"Thanks." Paul Blofis said. He wanted to correct Poseidon again but it doesn't sound right after he just gave him a compliment. Well, it was kind of a compliment.

Poseidon beamed. "So how's Goode High?"

"Uh..it isn't doing too well these days. With alumnus like Justin shooting seniors like Sky, Drew dead, even though it's pretty old but the Shooting. It just gives people the vibes that we aren't as safe anymore." Paul admitted.

Poseidon laughed. "Bullshit. Oh really? Really, Paul? You and I both know Goode High is never safe. It's just that things finally took action now. Goode High is probably safer than ever."

Paul Blofis sighed. "I guess so but now the public is involved. We don't look as good as before."

Poseidon shrugged. "Are you in this?"

"In what?"

"Solving the mystery, of course." Poseidon smiled. "You denied the chance in high school but now you're a teacher there, you're still eligible."

"What mystery?"

"Uh, who's the Shooter, who killed like a bunch of people?" Poseidon frowned. "Surely, you should know."

"Right that." Paul Blofis nodded eagerly. "Sure, I'm in." He remembered the mystery in high school. He was focused on his study and motivated by his parents, he was denied the turn to help solve the mystery. The thing was, the mystery in their freshman years had split the students into groups. Zeus fell into the popular group, Poseidon became a swim jock, Hades was more the type of person you would like to be kind of friends since his friendship is treasured by everybody - even Aphrodite. Paul didn't know that at that time. He thought it was just something silly and 'fun' that will pull him down on his studies. He became a loner for two years, literally hanging around toilets during lunchtimes, pretending to be occupied and it was shit. He wouldn't have been a loner if his best friend was still around but he moved away to Hawaii in the middle of their freshman year because of his dad's job. It's a good thing there was a wave of new students in his junior year to make friends with.

To be honest, he doesn't know what solving a mystery as a teacher in Goode High would give him credit into. There isn't cliques of teachers. There wasn't the more 'popular' type of teachers, the artistic teachers (although the art teachers would fit perfectly in it), the jock type and all those kind of things. They're all mature adults and got along pretty well. If they have a problem with one another, they don't start a fight, instead they just avoid the person they don't like.

"Good." Poseidon smirked. "I like you, Blowfish. I really do."

"Blofis." Paul corrected under his breath.

"I'll call you and tell you our plans."

"Who's 'our'?" Paul Blofish questioned. "I mean is it just us or is there somebody else?"

"Oh, no worries, Paul." Poseidon laughed. "There's many people behind us whether they know it all or not."

* * *

"Who has Jeremy as their middle name?" Percy called. Although it was April the First and Easter passed, it was raining on Easter so they prospered the annual school hunt to that day. Luckily, it's after twelve so Leo had stopped pulling pranks on everybody.

"I do." Leo whispered pulling Percy away from the crowd. "If we're working together, you don't yell."

"Okay." Percy nodded but frowned. "Hey! Your middle name is-"

"Shhh." Leo hissed covering his friend's mouth. "They don't know it."

"Right." Percy nodded and said loudly. "Leo Jeremy Valdez."

"Now where's the green watering bucket?" Leo demanded. "Ugh, those dorks got it."

"There got to be another one." Percy complained.

Leo looked around. "I don't see one."

"I hate these Easter hunts." Percy grumbled. "I don't even know why I bother coming to these."

BEEP!

Leo took out his phone. "Blocked number. I hate them. 90% of the time it's like those fucking ads who asks you to buy crap. The number is blocked and I can't even call back to yell at them or something - oh shit! Perce, look at this!"

Percy quickly grabbed Leo's phone and looked at it. "Damn. It says that the Shooter is in this very Easter hunt."

"I know." Leo said. "We have to tell the others."

Percy nodded. "Text them and I'll..uh I'll snoop around."

* * *

"Thank you for choosing this flight." The Captain announced as the plane landed. Jason, Piper and Chelsea took their belongings and made their way out of the aircraft into John F. Kennedy International Airport. Jason was careful not to let Chelsea out of his sight. Who knows what she'd attempt once they aren't looking at her? Escaping? Ditching them?

Piper took out her IPhone once they have service and texted her friends to tell them that she's back.

"Okay." Jason narrowed his sky blue eyes at Chelsea. "What's our next clue?"

Chelsea smiled dreamily as she pushed her hair out of her face. "Oh, that has already been issued. I'm sure your friends have been quite busy."

"My friends?" Jason repeated. "What have you done to them? And which friends? I'm not going to call every single one of them asking if they got a little paper slip or anything like that which can be a clue."

Chelsea shrugged. "I'm sure you would know which friend pretty soon."

Suddenly, Piper's phone rang.

"Oh, maybe that's it." Chelsea smirked.

Piper answer her phone. "Hey Leo."

"Goddamned it Beauty Queen, you're back with Jason?"

"Yeah and don't call me that." Piper snapped. "You know I hate that, repair boy."

Leo whistled. "Woah, somebody is in some crappy mood. Anyway, no time for arguments. We know who the Shooter is."

Piper's kaleidoscopic eyes turned to Chelsea who smiled at her knowingly. "What? Who? How?"

"Well," Leo started. "We don't actually know but we know that he or she is like in the same area with us. We got tipped off by an blocked text. Me and Percy is at the easter hunt thing."

"Percy and I." Piper corrected. "And why are you even in that thing? The hunt sucks. It's pointless and the prizes are cheap."

"Uh..we're bored?" Leo rolled his eyes. "Anyway, get your ass - and Jason's too - to the hunt so we can hunt for the Shooter together."

"Leo, do you know Chelsea? Chelsea Tait?" Piper asked.

"Hmm..hey, isn't she that cute chick who's your friend or something? Wait..no, isn't she Cat's friend? I think she's in my music class." Leo told her. "Why?"

"Okay, so we met her in California and she knows who the Shooter is. She left us fricken clues to find the Shooter and got us to New York. She said she gave one of our friends - which I'm assuming it's you now - a tip of who the Shooter is and yeah, basically she's next to me."

Leo laughed. "That's dodgy and you really trusted her? I thought you'd be more..suspicious about it."

Piper pursed her lips. "We didn't exactly have a choice. She's our closest link to the Shooter."

"Indeed I am." Chelsea added in gleefully from the background. "I'm the best shot you have."

* * *

"I think the guys might know who this Chelsea is." Annabeth told Reyna for the thousandth time as they pulled up in the easter hunt.

"Yeah, you told me." Reyna said. "You know Percy's going to be there, don't you?"

"Yup." Annabeth nodded. "So..what?"

Reyna looked at her friend. "Didn't you..well that whole Valentine thing.. you guys seem to be avoiding each other."

Annabeth shook her head. "Can't really avoid that date Leo set us up on but I would like to avoid him. However, this is business. It's important and I can't ignore it."

Reyna admired how determined her friend is. If she has to face her ex especially after such a bad break-up, she can never do it. She liked to think herself as a strong character but sometimes, she does have to break down. Annabeth certainly broke knowing that Percy knew about her kiss with Luke but at least she got back up and can face him. Reyna knew it was practically impossible for her to do so. "Piper just sent a text a few minutes ago saying that she's back in New York with Jason."

"How are you getting along with her and Jason?" Annabeth asked eager to turn the conversation to Reyna's love life instead.

Reyna sighed. "Don't remind me of it. I have no chance with Jason anymore. He's obviously with Piper who's Sky's date but Sky is still unconscious so man, this is messed up. I think I'm going to stop chasing after Jason. It's not worth it anymore. You can tell what a good pair Jason and Piper is but then there's Sky. God, this is confusing. I don't like to be tangled up with these things."

"That's unlike you." Annabeth commented. "You usually fight for everything you want even if it's not possible at all."

"I know but Piper's a really good friend of mines. I know I'm super jealous of her but she's great. I don't want to lose her and Jason. It's not worth it."

"Smart." Annabeth smiled at her friend. "Don't worry. You'll fall in love with somebody else and you'd eventually get the guy you're suppose to spend your life with."

Reyna looked at her friend slyly. "Don't worry, Annabeth. I'm sure you will forget about Percy too."

"Reyna!" Annabeth cried and confessed. "You know I still like him. It's just complicated."

"It can't be too complicated for me. Tell me what's going on."

"You won't get it." Annabeth insisted. "You won't and you're not supposed to. I'm not ready to tell you."

Reyna patted her friend's back sympathetically. "Tell me when you're ready. I'll listen to you."

* * *

Nico knew that the Easter Hunt is important and fun. You can to hunt things, but not the things on the list, real things that matter to life. Like the Shooter for instance. He knew the Shooter won't miss a chance like the Easter Hunt where there is so many people together at once. The Shooter can blend in easily and gather more clues for the next plan.

He didn't go with anybody. When Leo and Percy asked him to join them on the hunt, he told them that he'll be there but he'll be late. He could go there early but he isn't there to hunt for purple easter eggs or fluffy easter bunnies everybody's looking for. He's looking for other things that he prefer to do alone.

"Excuse me." He muttered to a person in front of him who's blocking the path with her many shopping bags.

"Oh, sorry dear." The woman turned to give him some space.

Nico shifted through the space. "Thanks."

"Mommy! Look! I found a cricket!" A little boy shrieked as his mother jumped back in fright.

"That's lovely, hon. Put it down now. It's not on the list." His mother said sternly.

A little girl almost trampled over his feet. "Sorry!" She squeaked and squirmed away.

Nico laughed. For some reasons, little kids are often afraid of him. Apparently, Nico gave off some 'dangerous' and 'creepy' vibe that kids don't like. A lot of kids have been taught by their overprotective parents to stay away from dodgy people that looks kind of like Nico.

"Emo." A teenage girl murmured under her breath as she shuddered.

Nico turned to glare at her. Now that is simply unacceptable. Okay, he likes black, he likes stuff stereotypical 'emo' people like but that does not mean he's emo. The girl is dressed in a tight dress that barely covered her ass and her whole face is plastered with make-up, does that mean she's a slut? Nico frowned. Okay, so she might dress like a slut but that doesn't mean he's emo.

Target spotted. His anger towards the girl slowly melted as he saw the person he wanted to meet. The Shooter might be here but he doesn't know who it is so he can't approach the Shooter yet. However, Nico knew he could approach Cat.

"Cat." Nico nodded curtly.

"Nico." Cat looked at him with coldness. "I assume you know who she is?"

* * *

"Leo!" Piper cried as she spotted her friend in a distance. She dashed towards him and gave him and Percy a hug. "Percy!"

"Hey guys." Jason smiled at his friends. "Good to see you guys."

"Good to see you too, bro." Percy patted Jason's back.

"Lucky bastard." Leo greeted his best friend. "You got to miss school."

Jason laughed. "You have no idea how lucky you are."

"So who the hell is the Shooter?" Piper asked quickly. "And yeah, this is Chelsea."

"Hi." Chelsea said as she rolled her eyes. "I guided you guys here. Do you still have to keep me as some kind of hostage? This isn't even fair. It's like Harry Potter kidnapping Dumbledore or something."

"Wow, you're eager to get out." Jason said. "I'm afraid you're not going anywhere until the Shooter's identity is revealed."

"Right." Leo nodded. "I think it's that clown over there. He looks dodgy. I mean, what kind of a clown has a blue nose? A fake one! Everybody knows clowns have red noses."

"My bet's on that homeless man in that corner." Percy pointed to a beggar. "The criminal is always the guy you least suspect it to be. Really, anyone should be on our list. That beggar is unsuspecting. Really, who would have thought that a beggar is the Shooter? I have to admit, that guy is a genius but he can't outsmart me."

"You know for a Seaweed Brain, you can be pretty deep." A voice retorted behind them. "Meaning the part about the criminal being the guy you least suspect it to be. However, I can bet anything that the beggar nor the clown is the Shooter."

"Annabeth!" Piper lit up as she gave her and Reyna a big hug.

"Who's she?" Reyna demanded looking at the girl beside Jason and Piper who's yawning excessively.

"Chelsea." Jason answered for her. "Chelsea Tait."

Reyna and Annabeth looked at each other. "Oh crap." Annabeth mouthed.

"What?" Chelsea frowned. "Is my hair messed up? Did my mascara come off? God, don't be all secretive."

"Jason, Piper, a private word please?" Reyna asked politely.

* * *

"It's him." Percy gestured towards a man. He had sunglasses, an unusual baggy trench-coat and a black brief case.

"You're right!" Leo exclaimed. "It is him. He seems fishy."

"Hey, where's Chelsea?" Percy looked around but she was out of sight.

Leo shrugged. "I don't know. Who cares? She probably saw some guy she liked and went over there to flirt with him."

Slowly, Percy and Leo made their way to the man. On queue, Percy 'accidentally' spilt his can of coke over him.

"Oh god, sorry!" Percy cried as scripted.

Neither Percy or Leo could tell whether the man is pissed at them or fine with it due to the sunglasses. His face gave no hint. "It's alright." He grumbled. "It's soda. I'll just get this to the laundry tonight."

"No, really. I'm sorry, Mr. I'll pay for any damages." Percy gritted his teeth. He didn't fancy using his money.

"Seriously, it's okay." The man insisted impatiently. "Excuse me, I must get going."

"Not meaning to be rude but what's your name? You can give me your address and I'll pay for a brand new suit and send it to your house." Percy told him. "It's only fair."

"It's alright." The man snarled. "I said it's fine. You don't have to do anything. Just get out of my sight."

"Are you sure, sir?" Percy kept on pestering him which is his speciality. "I insist buying you a new suit."

"I have money to buy as many suits as I like. I'm rich." The man told him.

"Of course you are." Leo butted in on queue. "You're the Shooter aren't you?"

"Excuse me?' The man glared at Leo. "Who the hell are you anyway?"

"Richard Nixon." Leo lied not realizing it's actually the name of an ex-American President.

The man laughed harshly. "Good try, kid. He's dead and you would never be him."

"No really!" Leo said his face burning red. "Richard is a common name and yeah, I'm related to him so our last names are the same."

The man shook his head. "Nice try. I'd give you a two out of five for convincing me."

"You are the Shooter aren't you?" Leo accused.

"Who's the Shooter?"

"You." Percy said. "You came inside Goode High and killed people with your gun a few years ago. Surely, you'd remember what you did."

Thankfully people beside them aren't paying attention. They're too busy finding their items to care about their surroundings. If this was anything else, Leo and Percy would have dragged themselves into quite some attention.

"Oh yes, that." The man shrugged. "Okay, I'm the Shooter."

"Jason! Piper! Reyna! Annabeth!" Leo shouted. The place was full of people yelling and screaming so it wasn't out of the ordinary Leo was calling loudly but it did earn a few glances from curious pedestrian.

"What?" They came over with quizzical expressions on their face.

"And where's Chelsea?" Annabeth asked sharply.

"Never mind that." Leo huffed. "This is the fucking Shoote.r"

"Indeed I am." The Shooter said in a mono-toned. "I'm glad you identified me. Can I go now?"

"I'm not done with you, mister!" A rush of emotions hit Jason. Leo couldn't really blame Jason after all the Shooter done to him and now he's admitting he is the Shooter in the calmest way. "You left me in a goddamned coma for two years and I didn't even hear anything for you. Who the hell are you anyway? What do you have against me? Two years of my life is lost. Lost! Thanks to you. You are not welcomed at all. What's your problem?"

"Excuse me?" The Shooter frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb with me. You know exactly what you're saying." Piper said aiding her friend.

The Shooter raised his eyebrows. "I seriously don't."

Like a wolf, Reyna pounced on him and spat. "You are a fucking coward. I don't even know what to say. You're such a jerk and man, I wish you are dead-"

"Woah. What the fuck?" The man said. "Okay, this is it. I don't even know what you guys want from me. Yeah, I'm the Shooter, so what? You know what? I'm calling security. Security! Get these rats off me!"

It's a miracle the security guards heard him over the crowd but somehow, they managed to come and pulled Reyna off the man.

"Kids, this isn't war zone." A security guard looked at them strictly. "You can't jump on people."

"He's the Shooter!" Jason cried. "You have to arrest him!"

"He even admitted he is the Shooter." Leo added in. "Go ahead. We're innocent."

"They assaulted me." The Shooter said calmly. "You saw that, didn't you, officers?"

"He fucking almost killed Jason and killed a whole bunch of people!" Percy protested. "Assaulting is nothing compared to that."

"I'm sorry, I have to ask you guys to leave." The officer told them. "If I ever catch you in here again, I would have to call your parents."

"Why are you teaming up with him?" Piper asked. "You're suppose to be on our side!"

"Don't make me take you out by force." The officer warned.

"It's not even fair!" Reyna screamed. "What's wrong with you? What's wrong with this world?"

"Bring them out." The officer ordered as his men dragged the flailing kids out of the place.

"Curse you!" Leo yelled. "This is fucking messed up."

When the security guards landed them outside and left giving the kids threatening glances, the group gathered around a nearby bench and pouted. "What the fuck?" Leo ranted. "We just caught that douchebag and we got sent out."

"I know right." Piper agreed. "Ugh."

Suddenly, Nico and Cat exited from the Easter hunt and ran towards the group.

"What the hell? I saw you guys being dragged outside by security guard." Cat demanded.

"Don't remind me of that." Piper shook her head. "We got the goddamned shooter and of course, we got kicked out. How the hell are we suppose to catch him again?"

Nico frowned. "Who told you and Jason to come back here."

"Cat, it's your friend, Chelsea." Jason replied.

"And we fucking lost her." Reyna grumbled. "I got a text from blocked number saying not to trust her but she's already gone."

Nico and Cat looked at each other as they seemed to communicate silently. Both of them seem to know what has been happening all along and bursted into laughters.

"What?" Percy frowned. "I don't like the looks of this."

BEEP! Percy, Leo, Reyna, Annabeth, Jason and Piper all got a text in unison. "Okay, this is weird." Reyna said as they all looked at their phones.

From: Chelsea Tait

Happy April Fools Day, bitches.

"I knew it!" Annabeth cried out. She has been silent for quite a while and was obviously analyzing the whole situation. "This was a fraud. It's a joke to get us off track."

"Piper, Jason, get back to California." Nico instructed them as Cat nodded in agreement. "Go to what you were suppose to do before you came back. It's important."

"Oh, that's why I got the text saying not to trust Chelsea!" Reyna said. "But who sent me that text?"

Cat tilted her head thoughtfully. "I don't know but it's interesting. I'm going to look into that."

"And why the hell would Chelsea pay for Jason, Piper and her own ticket from California back to New York just for a prank? She is one messed up kid." Annabeth noticed.

Cat shrugged. "She's rich. She doesn't have to care about money. I'll look into her too."

"It's after noon time!" Leo complained. "You aren't even _suppose_ to play pranks!"

* * *

**AN: hehe, Happy Belated Easter and April Fools Day! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. I love April Fools day so I decided to make a little prank in the story. What did you guys do for April Fools? I love hearing all kinds of pranks! :3**

**Also, you probably noticed that Hazel and Frank aren't in this chapter but don't worry, I have something big planned for them ;)**

**Kisses, Emily**


	35. Missing

**"You're still a prick and I still hate you but I forgive you because that's what friends are for. We forgive each other for being fucking douchebags" ~ Thalia Grace**

* * *

Chelsea Tait missing.

That's the headline of April 2nd. Apparently, after she slipped away from the group, she haven't been spotted by anyone else and just vanished. She was suppose to meet up with her friend Kaylee later but when she didn't show up, Kaylee got worried and phoned her parents. Her parents haven't heard from her in a while and got seriously stressed and went to call the police. Overnight, the police have been searching for Chelsea all across New York but is unsuccessful.

To be honest, Annabeth wasn't even worried about her. From what Chelsea did yesterday (and assuming Jason and Piper's story is true - yes, she should trust her friends but lately Annabeth isn't sure who she can trust anymore, including her best friends), Annabeth is sure Chelsea can survive on her own. She probably disappeared on purpose. Maybe planning another April Fools prank on somebody else.

Annabeth suspected that Chelsea's parents didn't know Chelsea as well as they would like to. They probably think that Chelsea is their perfect little angel or some other crap like that but that's like all parents. They think they know their kids but all they know is the top layer, the layer kids want to show their parents. Chelsea is much more than that. She's much more capable of things people don't think she can do which she hidden well in her many layers. Nobody had studied her and got underneath all those layers to see who Chelsea really is. However, that Chelsea is the real Chelsea. She probably has something up her sleeves.

Annabeth sort of missed Thalia. Since their fight, they haven't been communicating for a while and Annabeth missed that. Thalia is the only person who would take her seriously when she tell her all her crazy hunches like the fact that Chelsea is probably okay and laughing at all those people worried about her across the country or where-ever she's at. Thalia would understand and try to help her dig into that hunch to see if it's reality or not. She wanted to just call Thalia but she wasn't sure how she's going to apologize or would Thalia even pick up her call.

Okay, maybe she kind of stole Luke's phone number off Thalia and called Luke without Thalia's permission. Okay, she might have told Luke that she knew about him and Thalia which Thalia specifically told her not to. She can't help it. Luke is like her crush. Even though she was dating Percy, she still wanted Luke. Don't get her wrong, Percy is great but he's not Luke. Luke is just so perfect it actually hurts that he belongs to her ex-best friend. That was what her fight with Thalia was about. Luke. It was always Luke.

Hopefully Thalia forgave her. Annabeth is still hurt by those mean insults she threw at her during their fight but it's nothing compare to the pain of losing Thalia. Thalia had once risked her life to safe Annabeth's for heavens sake. That is really brave of her.

Besides, Luke is kind of too old for Annabeth. Although, when Luke came to her house before he ran away to San Francisco and kissed her..it was perfect. It was heavenly. Something Annabeth wanted since well..forever. It was a gentle kiss on the lip and Annabeth was sure nobody took a picture of it but now, she realized it's Thalia. Of course. Luke is dating Thalia so Thalia must have been pissed at her for kissing her boyfriend even though Luke made the move. Thalia left the picture on purpose for Rachel to find which she did and send it to Leo which eventually got through the group. Sometimes, Thalia is too smart even for Annabeth. Her plan is always flawless.

Now, Annabeth wasn't even sure where Luke is. Thalia had once told her that he's in San Francisco but he probably moved around. You can't stay in one place for too long and somehow not attract attention. Thalia probably knows though. Damn her.

Quickly, Annabeth grabbed her phone and put in Thalia's numbers and press 'call'.

"Hey, you reached Thalia's voice mail. I'm either smoking pot or screwing some stranger at some dodgy pub. Just kidding, why the hell would I do that? But yeah, I'm busy so leave a message after this beep. Oh yeah, before the beep comes, if you're some annoying shitty advertisements, hang up. If you're my parents, press 1. If you're Jason Grace, press 2. If you're Annabeth Chase, press 3." Thalia said.

Annabeth didn't wait any longer as she pressed '3'.

"Annabeth Chase!" Thalia voice came over the speaker again which made Annabeth missing her even more. "I know why you called. You're going to apologize, tell me that you're my slave for a month and all that kind of shit, right? I know you too well, Annie. Your answer is no. I'm not accepting your apology, You were a fucking prick and I hate your guts. Okay, just joking. You're still a prick and I still hate you but I forgive you because that's what friends are for. We forgive each other for being fucking douchebags Even if your'e a goddamn motherfucker, I'd still have to forgive you which you kind of are. Anyway, sorry you can't reach me now. I'm busy as I mentioned before and please don't say anything after the non existing BEEP because I'm not interested in further apology but I do like the part where you're going to be my slave. Don't worry, we can negotiate that when we meet up. Call me in another week or so and maybe I'll be around."

Another week? Annabeth sighed. What the hell has Thalia got herself into? It's a relief that Thalia forgave her even though she's now a motherfucker, a prick and a douchebag according to her best friend which isn't exactly encouraging.

Annabeth scrolled past her Facebook news feed again thinking of ways to contact Thalia when she came across a picture of Rachel in her new boarding school in Switzerland. She kind of had a bad ending in New York confessing to work for a certain 'boss' and faking her friendship with the group but Rachel has definitely made the right decision She convinced her father to let her go to a boarding school in Switzerland for the rest of the year for a 'fresh start'. It's smart, at least the group doesn't have to worry about her anymore. Besides, Rachel seems at eased and happy in her new school. From her Facebook pictures, she made quite some friends and they have lots of fun together.

Annabeth really hoped that Rachel had a fresh start. She left New York in a pretty bad state and even though she sort of hurt her, Annabeth thinks that she deserve a new start. She isn't all bad. She's still pretty cool.

* * *

"Goddamn planes." Piper grumbled. "This is like the third time I've been on one in this fricken months."

"They're not that bad." Jason shrugged. "Despite the fact that there isn't TV or good food or interesting newspapers or clean blanket or pillow or..It actually sounds pretty shit doesn't it?"

Piper laughed. "Yeah. We don't even get a fucking window seat because our booking to Malibu is last minute. It's not my fault that we got tricked by Chelsea to come back to Malibu and Nico ordered us to leave one day after getting to New York."

"Watch your language!" A mother of two boys who looked about seven years old tutted. "Everybody can hear you swear."

Jason bowed his head respectfully. "Sorry, ma'am"

"Dude, it's a stranger." Piper whispered. "Why are you so damn polite?"

"We already got her pissed. Besides, do you want to sit next to an angry mother? I think not." Jason reasoned. "Angry mothers are the worse to deal with. Even worse than cranky elderly, trust me."

Piper laughed. "What happened? How did you manage to get a mother mad with being polite? Did you say 'please' too often? And how did you piss off an elderly? Maybe you said 'excuse me' too many times? Or is it 'pardon me'?"

"Shut up." Jason flicked his fingers irritably at her. "I'm not that nice."

"Yeah, you are. I never met a teenager this nice." Piper told him. "You look like you're like some kind of a forty year old gentleman which came right out of Jane Austen novel."

"I don't wear a suit and offer to hold a petite umbrella while walking around with some girl in a nicely trimmed park." Jason retorted.

"What made you think of that?" Piper raised her eyebrows. "Did you watch Pride and Prejudice or something?"

Jason shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I saw some movie posters like that. You know, the type that looks like something Jane Austen would write."

"I'm still betting on the fact you watched the movie or read the book."

"Not true!" Jason insisted. "That's for people like you."

"Hey! I don't read or watch that kind of sappy stuff. You know me."

"I won't either." Jason said firmly. "I seriously won't. It's not like they look appealing in every way although the cover for Sense and Sensibility was kind of intriguing so I picked up a simplified version of it and it was okay..It was only the simplified version, okay? It wasn't like it's 400 pages long or more than that. I did not spend a week trying to read the full version of Sense and Sensibility secretly after reading the simplified version. I don't know anything about the Dashwood sisters though I must say Marianne is a very interesting character - that is not the point."

Piper shook her head and said sarcastically. "Sure. I totally believe you. It's cool, bro."

"It was a pretty interesting book!" Jason muttered defensively. "You should read it sometime."

"I see the sense in that book haven't taught you not to tell me to read any Jane Austen books already. Maybe you should read that book again."

Jason looked at Piper intently. "Do you even know what it's about?"

"Uh..no?" Piper frowned.

"You should. It's a classic. It's like you probably know the plot of Harry Potter before actually reading the books or watching the movie. You should at least know what happens in the book."

"Spoiler alert!" Piper cried. "Anyway, I was reading Harry Potter before it became such a success."

"Come on, was it ever not famous?" Jason argued.

"Shush!" The mother glared at them. "Tim was about to fall asleep."

* * *

"Coke?" Cat offered the boy who accompanied her a can.

"Thanks." Nico took the coke, popped it open and took a slow sip from it. "Nice house."

"Yeah, it's pretty rad." Cat agreed.

Nico's brown eyes stared at the cool wooden wall behind Cat. "Do you know where Chelsea is?"

Cat shook her head. "And here's the worse part, I've been getting a bunch of phone calls from Brittany, Kaylee, Kerri and London asking about Chelsea."

Nico laughed dully. "You aren't forced to hang out with them, you know. It's the fact that they will lose it after you're gone and reveal everything without meaning to you're afraid of isn't it? I'm assuming you helped Kaylee when she killed Drew for money? I'm guessing you're the one who helped Brittany the ninja when the police almost caught her knocking Piper out last Halloween?"

"How did..how did you know?" Cat frowned and sighed. "I really underestimated you, Di Angelo."

"Everybody does." Nico smiled strangely. "That's the best part of things. They think I'm only the son of Hades Di Angelo. A figurehead to carry on the family name. Nobody views me as a threat."

"And they should." Cat cocked her eyebrows. "You're one of the most dangerous people I know and I like it. Frankly, I think you're just as good as your dad."

Nico was caught off guard with that compliment comparing him with his dad. Was he really this good in the game to be compared to the legendary Hades? If this was Harry Potter, Nico felt like..Neville Longbottom. A supporting character in the main plot. Even if he's that good, he would only be stuck with being Harry Potter. However, Hades is like Dumbledore. He seems to know everything and know what he has to do in order for things to play out the right way. "Um..thanks." He said slowly.

Unlikely bond isn't it? Between Nico and Cat. That's exactly what they chose to work together. They both knew how powerful each other were and knew they can solve this if they put their puzzle pieces together. Oddly enough, both teenagers decided to trust each other despite being doubtful of almost everything. It was that gut feeling they know they have to work together. If you ask their brains, it would be telling you that it's a bad idea but they felt like it wasn't. Of course, they realize they can't give out everything so easily to their friends like Piper, Jason, Percy, Annabeth, Hazel, Frank, Leo, Reyna or whoever else wanting to solve the mystery as well but with their help, the group can solve it themselves. Cat and Nico knew better than to be the ones who told the world everything. They both knew somethings are meant to be kept a secret if you're not as pure as they seem to be.

People like Percy and Piper would have a better and less risky chance exposing the Shooter than Nico or Cat. It's best for them to do it. Imagine this whole story to be like a book (AN: kinda ironic since it kinda is one..:P), the group can be like the main characters solving the story but Nico and Cat are merely the readers who are also solving the mystery at the same time but couldn't really help the characters in any way. Even though you really want to yell at the book to tell them some kind of monster are behind them or something, they can't hear you, it won't work.

"Mitchell's helping Reyna." Cat prompted him. "You know, Mitchell Tanaka. Drew's step brother?"

"Oh." Nico groaned. "You know he is going to be the victim of the Shooter, right? As you said so, he is Drew's step brother. He's not far off the Shooter's kill list."

"Shit! We can't lose another person!" Cat cried.

Nico raised his eyebrow. "What are you going to do? Hide him in some special wine cellar you have around here? Maybe you can shield him from the Shooter but you know he'll just find another victim to compensate Mitchell. Mitchell isn't even that important. He's just close to Drew so the Shooter wants him dead. To be honest, he didn't even like Drew. It's just because they lived together. Pretty unfortunate, I must say."

"The Shooter is fucked up." Cat told him. "Seriously fucked up."

"Tell me something the whole world doesn't know." Nico rolled his eyes. "You're like saying 'grass is green' and I'm indicating the healthy kind you see in postcard pictures, not that dying yellow grass."

Cat flicked her hair like she was in a shampoo commercial. "You're a pain sometimes, Di Angelo."

"I know." Nico retorted. "I do have a sister to tell me that already. Except, what do you mean by sometimes? What am I the other times?"

"Just Nico." Cat grinned. "A sick-minded genius who really belongs in some asylum."

Nico narrowed his eyes at Cat and said hastily. "Anyway, those fucking police are after me again, especially that Leah bitch. Still offering me a hundred bucks. She obviously learnt that I don't do business for merely hundred bucks. I would only consider if you make it a thousand but seriously, a hundred. She got to be joking."

"How about those McDonalds happy meals she offers everybody below the age of 18?" Cat giggled. "Free food is pretty awesome but information like this ain't worth a happy meal."

Nico slapped his face with his palm. "Oh god, those. I mean McDonalds happy meal are only good for offering it to the dead. The dead loves McDonalds and since happy meals are usually for kids, the dead likes to eat sometimes kids normally eat to feel young again."

"Where the hell do you get that?" Cat stared at the pale boy. "Are you those freaky people who are like obsessed with dead people?"

"I like to be." Nico shrugged. "As you say, it freaks people out. It creeps them out and I'd like that."

"You're weird. Weird and twisted, boy." Cat shook her head and laughed. "That's good for this project. I would need a super creepy kid next to me."

* * *

"Shit." Frank swore as he quickly ran away from a street.

"What?" Hazel frowned as she had to quickly hurry behind him. 'Why are you running?"

Frank hid behind a tree and constantly peeked outside and whispered. "Isn't that Jason's doctor? Doctor Marshall?"

"Yeah, so?" Hazel raised her eyebrows. "I think we should say hi."

"He doesn't know who we are." Frank reminded her.

"He kinda knows me." Hazel shrugged. "I went to his house with Leo for that questionnaire."

"Shhh.." Somebody hissed behind them.

Hazel jumped behind Frank, using him as some kind of a human defensive machine.

"Hey!" Frank tried getting Hazel in front of him but failed as he looked around him nervously. "He..Hello? Is uh..anyone there? If you're an alien, we came in peace, although you're the one who's suppose to come in peace. Please don't kill us. I mean, if you're looking for tasty humans, Hazel tastes better. She uh.. taste like breadsticks. Behind me!"

"Shut up." Clarisse growled as she gave up her hiding spot. "You sound pathetic, prissy."

"Yeah." Hazel agreed. "And I certainly don't taste like a breadstick but Clarisse, what are you doing here?"

"And I thought prissy is only for Percy!" Frank added in.

Clarisse ignored Frank's outburst and looked at Hazel expectantly. "What are you doing here? Probably doing the same thing as me? Spying on Mr. Brad Marshall. What else would I be doing, duh!"

"We aren't spying." Frank spluttered. "We're hiding."

Hazel frowned. "Why are you even stalking him? There's nothing that special about him. He's your typical doctor."

"If he's your typical doctor, why are you hiding then?" Clarisse pointed out. "Even you know he isn't that normal. I have conducted my research for years, obviously I know he's something."

"What do you know about him?" Frank demanded.

"He's a fucking retard." Clarisse rolled her eyes. "He's obviously a druggie, a dealer, a fraud, a liar, a minion, a mindless chipmunk, a-"

"Wait a minute." Hazel interrupted. "What do you mean by a minion? Like I would ask why for the others too but minion, that's not a word people use often."

Clarisse sighed. "Elementary, prissy. He's working for somebody, duh! Why on earth would he want to do what he did to Jason? He's working for somebody which I'm suspecting is the Shooter."

Frank nodded. "I suppose that can make sense in a way. I didn't know you were trying to solve the case though."

"Chris fucking died in that Shooting when he got shot." Clarisse growled. "When I find that prick, I'll personally stab them."

"I wasn't there during the Shooter or saw anything but police report did mention that Chris was only shot in the stomach but probably died of fright or something." Hazel protested timidly. "If he died of fright, the Shooter didn't really shoot him."

"Does it matter?" Clarisse questioned. "He still died because of the Shooter. The Shooter is probably so ugly it scared the hell out of people."

"Glad to have you on our team." Hazel smiled trying to sound positive. "We're also trying to basically find the Shooter so yeah."

"We think the Shooting has something to do with Brad Marshall." Frank explained to Clarisse.

Clarisse sneered. "No shit, Sherlock. I figured that out ages ago. Haven't you been watching his actions? He's all dodgy and careful. He got to be into something and the Shooting is the only thing you can relate him to. New York isn't the city of crimes. If there are many things happening, I can bet that they're connected to each other. New York is pretty darn small, everything's related."

* * *

"This stuff is pretty old." Jason commented as he looked through boxes of Poseidon Jackson's high school items. "Look at this photo, it's all faded."

Piper took a glance at it and laughed. "Oh my god. That really isn't a good day for class photo. I mean, my parents look okay but Percy's dad's hair looks as if it's dripping wet. I think he didn't even bother drying it after he went for a swim practice or something. Oh gods, do you see Nico's dad? His hair is obviously gelled."

"They can't beat my dad." Jason told her. "He looks ridiculous in pinstripes."

"He doesn't look pleased either." Piper took an interest in the photo and sat down to inspect it. "He's like on the verge of tears. People are probably bullying him because of his pinstripes."

"Bullying him?" Jason repeated. "Oh no. Dad never gets bullied. You should really hear him boasting about teasing other people instead."

"Why else would he be crying then?"

Jason thought for a while. Why would a strong teenage boy be crying? "He didn't make it to the football team?"

"He doesn't even play football."

"Hmm..I got it! He lost his phone and my grandmother is going to kill him!"

Piper laughed. "Keep guessing Jason. I'm still going with the whole bullying idea. It is high school."

Jason shrugged as he took out another item from a cupboard. "Are these socks from high school?"

Piper swatted them away. "Ew! He really has to clean this place up."

Jason took the sock and threw it to a corner distastefully. "Agreed."

They spent the whole day digging up anything they found interesting in the apartment which there are many things. They found pictures which they stored in a file, diaries which they plan to take to Piper's mansion to study, posters of old bands, dirty jerseys, swimming trophies**…**

"Aww, look at this!" Piper cooed as she showed Jason a picture. It was a photo of Poseidon Jackson and a pretty brunette with green eyes. Neither Piper or Jason could recognize the girl but they seem to be on a date.

Jason smiled as he saw the picture. "Piper, you sound like your friend Lacy. When did you get excited above all this love kind of stuff?"

"I guess it rubs off on you." Piper shrugged. "But seriously, do I sound really bad? That would suck, you know."

"I like it." Jason replied. "It's a fresh change for you."

"Um..thanks."

* * *

"You really did love him, didn't you?" Reyna jumped from her bed as she turned around and saw Mitchell.

"Dude! It's 10pm. What the hell are you doing here? How did you even get inside my house or my bedroom?" Reyna cried. "What the fuck?"

Mitchell laughed. "Your backdoor is never locked. Your parents are already in bed and your sister isn't here. I know my way around this neighborhood."

"Okay, that is just creepy." Reyna shuddered. "Have you been coming in like every night without me knowing or something?"

"Nothing like that." Mitchell reassured her. "Besides, I don't stalk you or anybody in particular. I found this map in one of Drew's make-up bags this morning. It's pretty neat. It has like every single house drawn carefully on it with annotations of how to get it, what room there is, who lives there and all those kind of things. Look, it says that your parents usually go to bed 10 o clock, but midnight on Saturdays for your dad."

Reyna frowned. "Okay, I'm creeped out. That girl scares me. She's like so damn right."

"Back to you." Mitchell gestured at the photos Reyna was holding. The photos were all pictures of her and Jason. She missed Jason. Sure, she had tried convincing herself to move on but it's like her heart goes right back to Jason. She did have a small crush on Sky before Valentine Day but really, she's got an even smaller chance with him and he isn't as cute as Jason. "He is something, isn't he? Got chicks running around for him. You, Piper."

"Piper?" Reyna raised her eyebrows. "Isn't she dating Sky? Even though he's like half-dead?"

Mitchell shrugged. "Love come and go. I don't know how long they'll last."

"Forever, probably." Reyna replied. "They both seemed really into each other."

"How about Jason then?" Mitchell challenged. "It looks like he's free for you."

"He likes Piper!" Reyna reasoned. "You can't date a guy who likes one of your best friends! I don't even know what kind of logic is that."

Mitchell smiled. "You'll find your match. There's this belief in Ancient Greece where there's always somebody for you no matter what you're sexuality is. It's said that men were actually born with like two sets of everything but they grew unpredictable so the gods chopped them in half. That's why you spend your life finding the other person, your other half. There's always somebody for you, Reyna." **(AN: Idk..I read this somewhere but you might have heard other versions of it...)**

"I hope there is." Reyna laughed bitterly. "I can seriously imagine myself being alone forever. The one in the sidelines just not getting anything."

Mitchell looked into Reyna's dark brown eyes intently. "Look at me. I'm single but I have hope. I know somebody is waiting for me and that's what you need. Hope, to believe in yourself. Okay, maybe neither Sky or Jason is your perfect match - they might be but nobody knows, there could be some other cute guy waiting out there. You might have already met him or haven't yet."

"How do you know?" Reyna sighed. "I'm sick of hearing all those kind of crap like there's always somebody for you, because there isn't. Nobody's there for me. I'll be the one throwing lame single parties every year and the one spending New Years Eve, Valentine Day, all the couples holidays alone with my laptop or something. I don't need love, Mitchell. There isn't hope for me. I'm strong, I can do this alone."

"Reyna, everybody needs love." Mitchell answered passionately. "It's a fundamental thing. It's like how you need food to survive. Love is something special, you'll cherish it when you meet the right person. You just haven't met the special him yet."

"It's alright." Reyna shrugged trying to persuade herself and Mitchell. "I don't really care. Love is just messed up emotions to me. I can live without it. Okay, maybe you can't or other people can't but I'm special, I can live without it. That's who I am."

Mitchell shook his head, half-smiling. "You can't hide from love. Drew tried that but it obviously didn't work. You can try but you won't succeed."

"Drew?" Reyna echoed. "What happened to her?"

"That's between me and her. It's a step-sibling thing. I can't tell you but I can tell you that I'm right someday. Maybe next month, you would come running and tell me that I'm right."

"Haha." Reyna said bleakly. "Yeah, if I ever fall in love."

* * *

**AN: Ugh..breaks over and back to school :( Yeah, I really miss the holidays. I just hate waking up at like 6am in the morning and having sit through boring stuff like maths. It drives me absolutely nuts. I hope this chapter is pretty good, sorry, I'm really tired just focusing on getting back into the school schedule I haven't got as much time to write this as I did with my other chapters. **

**Yay! Reached 100+ reviews! Thank you so much guys! I never thought I'd ever reach it but asdfghjkl; it's amazing :) I just love it when you guys review my work so I know which stage I am for the next chapter :P Thank you so much! xxx**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	36. Better Off Stupid

**"History repeats itself all the time. We fail to learn from history so we forced ourselves into learning it first handed. We don't want to change from the old ways until we're absolutely forced ourselves into. We just don't learn until it happens on us." ~ Silena Beaugard**

* * *

Katie laughed at her best friend. "If it's the Strolls, I can definitely think of better insults."

Miranda rolled her eyes. "It's so obvious you have a crush on Travis. Ask him out already! You, unlike this bitch over here actually have a chance on getting a guy."

It was their Freshman year, before the Shooting. Even though Piper was sort of friends with Annabeth, Hazel, Leo and the people she usually hang out with now, she was much closer to Silena, Katie and Miranda. They were her best friends since her dispute with Cat. They were at that time the most popular girls in Goode High. Silena being the main it-girl while Piper, Katie and Miranda also sharing the fame. Of course, there's Drew but she was not prom queen popular, she was after Silena died though. All popular girls tease the other less socially fortunate people than themselves just for fun and that's exactly what they're doing to Reyna. Silena, Katie and Miranda had this idea where Piper and Jason would be your ever after couple and when they found out Reyna tried flirting with Jason, it wasn't pretty. Even though the group just knew the students from Camp Jupiter middle school that term (as they were from Camp Half Blood middle school and once they reach high school, both middle school became one school), it didn't stop them from taunting students there.

Piper blushed. There was nothing going on between her and Jason. Sure, he's kinda cute but seriously, Reyna can have him if she wanted! It's a fair game.

"Stop teasing her!" Silena noticed how uncomfortable Piper was and nudged Miranda.

"Okay!" Miranda shrugged. "But I'm watching you, dork. Jason can do better than you."

"Get lost." Reyna muttered quiet enough to satisfy herself saying these words but not loud enough for the four girls to actually hear what she said.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear what you said." Silena warned.

Piper shook her head and whispered quietly as Silena, Katie and Miranda turned their backs away from Reyna. "Forget what they said. I'm so sorry, they're not usually like this."

Reyna sighed. "Thanks but honestly, they're right. What chance do I have with Jason Grace? He's all yours."

Piper bit her lips. She didn't like being so mean to people who didn't really hurt her. "Of course you have a chance with him. Everybody does. You're gorgeous, you know him better, you're regal and strong just like Jason. You guys are so alike you make a good pair."

"I hope so." Reyna said softly and nodded towards Piper's friends. "You better go now. They won't like you talking to me."

Piper nodded and hurried back to her friends who was talking about the sleepover they plan to have that Friday. Even now, she felt bad being apart of teasing people like Reyna especially when she's friends with them. Piper teased them quite a bit in the past, why do they still want to be friends with her? They're glad that somebody popular wants their friendship? They want to be noticed in school?

Piper knew what it was like being bullied. In kindergarten, the parents and teachers there are extremely racist even when people should be over their racial difference. They laughed at her being a Native American and made fun of her, even the kids discriminated her. It was nasty and she used to cry a lot. It wasn't the same kind of bullying she did to other people but it probably hurt the same.

"You and Jason will be amazing together." Miranda cooed.

"Not as cute as you and Connor." Katie teased.

Miranda giggled. "Okay, I'll take one of the brothers. You take the other, Travis."

Silena and Piper giggled. It was obvious to the group that Miranda had a crush on Connor while Travis had a crush on Katie. They always tease each other of dating a Stroll.

"Cut it out, you two." Silena smiled. "You'll be dating them in no time."

"Hey Katie!" As if on cue, Travis Stroll made his entrance and threw something towards her.

Katie screamed as she jumped back. "It's a fricken spider!"

"Exactly, chill bro." Travis shrugged as he collected his spider. "Found it in my backyard this morning. It's pretty, isn't it? Look at it's features. I'd love to have a pet spider, you know, when we live in the same house together."

Subtle. Totally subtle. That's how Travis flirts. He already start hinting that he wanted to spend his life with Katie since sixth grade. It's actually pretty cute if you're not Katie.

"We're not going to live in the same house, don't worry." Katie shuddered as her friends laughed.

"Where's Connor?" Miranda asked. Travis was always around Connor and vice versa. It's like they come in a package. However, that day only Travis once seen.

Travis grinned. "Just collecting a few things for our newest…scheme."

"Does it involve me?" Katie blurted in. The Strolls' 'schemes' often included Katie in it, as the victim. It wasn't pleasant being Travis' number one favorite victim but it was his way of getting Katie's attention. Piper loved how Travis tried really hard to get Katie, she found it sweet. Secretly, she hoped Jason would do something to try and get her but they were just friends. Not even really close friends.

"Guess you'll have to wait and find out."

Silena's eyes lit up when Beckendorf came behind her and crushed in a hug. "Charlie!" Silena squealed.

"My parents want to invite you to dinner tonight." Beckendorf told her. "My cousins are around and they want to meet you."

"Sure!" Silena said happily. "My dad probably won't make it home for dinner again. He always have those meetings from his chocolate factory to attend and they include dinners. I'll just text him to tell him I'm not coming home."

Piper sighed and looked at her watch. It was almost time for registration but neither of her friends seemed bothered to leave. Suddenly, a shrill shriek was heard. Piper turned out quickly and saw Annabeth dropping her books onto the ground with a horrified expression on her face.

Travis grinned. "Oops."

"What did you do now?" Piper demanded.

"Sp-sp-spider!" Annabeth cried shaking in fear. "Goddamned it! Everybody knows I have arachnophobia!"

"Take it back, now!" Katie ordered.

Normally, the group would just laugh at the victim but it's Annabeth. She was sort of their friend and they always stuck up to each other. Even though Annabeth doesn't hang out with them, they still sort of cared for each other. She was the only person outside of the group who doesn't get victimized the way other people do. Silena, Piper, Katie and Miranda treats her like she's in the group sometimes.

Travis sighed. "Can't take a joke?"

"I don't have arachnophobia and I'm freaked out by that thing. You know she can literally have a heart attack seeing a spider." Katie scolded.

Silena and Beckendorf were too busy discussing their dinner plans to notice what's going on. It's amazing how love is, Piper knew just by watching them. They're so in love with each other, sometimes they get lost in their own world, World War Three could have happened and they won't know. Nobody minded them, it's just love. It's beautiful. Their love is absolutely gorgeous, it's perfection.

Miranda was curious about Annabeth's shriek but was too occupied with trying to spot Connor. She really wanted to drop some more hints that he should ask her out sometime. Start of school dance was coming up soon and Miranda would die for Connor to ask her to it. She knew Beckendorf would ask or probably had already asked Silena. Travis was obviously waiting for the perfect moment to ask Katie. Piper would have no problem getting a date even if it wasn't Jason (Miranda swore they were made for each other), she's just drop dead stunning. Guys trip over themselves to ask her. Miranda knew she wasn't as pretty as any of the girls in the group or anything guys like. If there's anybody who have trouble getting a date, it'll be her.

"Connor!" Miranda grinned as she finally saw him.

"Hey, Mir." Connor nodded. "Bro! Got the-"

"Shh!" Travis' darted from Katie towards his brother to put his hand in front of his mouth. "Not in front of them." He gestured towards Katie.

"Oh right." Connor nodded and bursted into laughters as he saw Annabeth dealing with the spider Travis didn't take back yet. "God, it's just a spider, Annie!" He said knowing that she hated being called Annie.

"I'll kill you and your brother later." Annabeth growled.

"Welcome to my world." Katie had a sympathetic smile on her face. "It's not nice."

Miranda sighed. There goes Connor's attention. His attention is so hard to get. It just keeps running away from one thing to another. It never focused on anything. "Connor!' She tried again. "What's our math homework?" She asked even though she knew what it was.

"Exercise 12 to 14 or something." Connor replied.

Miranda groaned and lied. "Oh my god, seriously? I hate algebra. I'm absolutely shit at it."

"You're not." Connor scoffed. "I saw you got full marks last time."

"I guess I got lucky." Miranda shrugged modestly.

"I was riding shotgun with my hair undone in the front seat of his car. He's got a one-hand feel on the steering wheel the other on my heart." Taylor Swift sang through the speakers as the students all look up in confusion.

"What the hell?" Travis frowned. "Why are they blasting Taylor Swift instead of the bell?"

Slowly, the students began to realize it's a joke and started laughing. Leo Valdez walked through the school doors wearing a cowboy hat and grinned. "We're going country!" He yelled as he somehow got a bunch of pigs and even two horses through the door to roam around the school. He also managed to get a few trucks to drop down some haystack in the school yard.

Piper remembered it clearly as it marked one of Leo's greatest pranks. Luckily, their principal had a sense of humor and let Leo off with just a couple of detentions. He even kept the country decorations around for a few days. She liked thinking of the times before the Shooting. She missed Silena. She kind of missed Katie and Miranda too. They hung out a bit after the Shooting but slowly and steadily broke apart. Katie and Miranda are still best friends but Piper is now closer with Cat, Annabeth, Hazel and their group.

Everything back then was so simple. She was already at the top and had everything she wanted. Okay, maybe she wanted Jason but that's nothing as big as the mess she's in now. Piper felt so weak now. Somehow, she figured that Jason stirred something when he woke up from his coma. It was pretty peaceful until Jason came back. The moment Jason woke up, it seems like Piper's world isn't safe anymore. The Shooting is in large again and people suffered once more.

"History repeats itself all the time." Silena once told her. "We fail to learn from history so we forced ourselves into learning it first handed. We don't want to change from the old ways until we're absolutely forced ourselves into. We just don't learn until it happens on us."

People thought Silena was a barbie doll. Nothing but a pretty face. If you really knew Silena, you'd know she's smart too. Not the book kind, she can't remember how many sonatas Shakespeare wrote or anything but she does come up with pretty wise words people learn from. Piper knew whatever Silena said can be true.

History did kind of repeat itself, didn't it? After Jason woke up, it started all over again.

* * *

"Does Drew have any friends in California?" Reyna asked Mitchell. They were meeting up to look through Drew's stuff again.

Mitchell paused and thought for a while. "I actually don't know. I got my first girlfriend there so I wasn't really paying attention. Besides, she's always out of the house and we don't really care what each other does. I suppose she has friends but I never really seen them before. Occasionally, she would mention them but not in detail. Why?"

"I kinda stalked Drew on Facebook just after she died and you know, after you scrolled past those hate comments from people saying they're glad that she died, there are people supposedly called Natalia Reynolds and Helen Samuels who are her friends and Matthew Todds who's her boyfriend who occasionally posts things on Drew's wall to tell her that they miss her but I did the google reverse search on their pictures and they're all models with different names. Natalia Reynolds, Helen Samuel and Matthew Todds doesn't exist."

"That's shallow." Mitchell commented. "Low, even for her."

"Are you sure?" Reyna questioned. "We don't know half of Drew. Maybe she can stoop this low. Maybe she is this desperate to seem popular even if it's not in New York. None of us knew her in California or in New York as much as we would like to."

"Does Drew actually know the real models then?" Mitchell asked.

"No." Reyna shook her head. "At least I don't think so. These models are like legit magazine cover ones. How would Drew ever met them and not boasted it to anybody? I suppose there is a chance for that to happen though."

Mitchell sighed "I wish I can somehow contact them. If they are real famous, asking them stuff would be really hard, it'll be like trying to contact Mila Kunis. We don't even know anybody associated with them. It's not like we can call up their managers to arrange a meeting with them."

Reyna smiled. "Oh really? I'll call Piper. She's in California now. She might be able to meet them for us."

"Good idea." Mitchell approved. "The name Natalia Reynolds, Helen Samuels and Matthew Todds does sound familiar though. I must have heard it somewhere."

"Are you sure? These people are made up. I don't think there's anybody actually named that. Well, those names are pretty common but not anybody Drew would know."

Mitchell flipped through some of Drew's things in her drawer casually. "Yeah, it's like deja vu. It's so familiar I have to heard it before. It's like I should know these people."

Reyna urged. "Think! Use your brain power or whatever. Where have you heard this before?"

"I suppose I heard it from Drew." Mitchell assumed. "But it's nothing recent. Nothing in the past five years, I don't think. I can remember somebody repeating those names but it's not how Drew would say it as a teenager. She doesn't talk like that. It might not be Drew who said those names. The question is who."

"So you can recall somebody calling those names?" Reyna bit her lips.

"Yes." Mitchell confirmed. "Like a faint memory. Like how you might remember something you did when you're 2 years old. It's faint, I can't see it but I can hear it. I don't recall who's saying it but the names are clear. I know I'm telling that person to 'shut up' and another person is telling me to watch my language."

"Freaky." Reyna shuddered. "That is something fishy."

"Trust me, it's not as creepy for you than it is for me. I'm actually remembering the memory and the way you're shivering is making this seem like some kind of a horror movie. I can half expect some psycho man to pop out of nowhere with a chainsaw and I suddenly remembering everything where the voices are some ghost shit from parallel worlds and we'd be getting into a hell lot of mess."

Reyna laughed. "I bet it won't be as complicated as you're making it out to be. I don't believe in ghosts are parallel worlds. They're pure fiction people make up to scare themselves. People love to freak each other out. Besides, they love believing in the supernatural. It's mysterious, dark and they love those kind of things. They don't need proof, all they need is a good story. They want to believe there's something more to what they know. They want something spooky."

"Deep. " Mitchell nodded. "So you don't believe in God or anything? Or is it only ghosts?"

"I'm atheist." Reyna told him. "I'm not a hater on religion though. I just think it's bullshit. People make up all their gods to guide them through life. They want to have somebody to look up to and to follow. People want to have a guide they can ask for help in their darkest time. They want to know somebody is there for them when nobody else is. They want to have that sense of comfort nobody human can offer. They want to be loved and cared for at all times. For some people, you can't find that in our society because we're judgmental. We judge people for who they are and we hurt the ones who we don't like for our own personal reasons or pressure from other people. Those people being bullied and hurt can't find anywhere or anything in this materialistic world that's safe anymore. They want somebody who's all benevolent and all powerful to be there for them. They want to be able to pray for help and somehow hope a miracle would happen. Sometimes, a miracle does happen. In fact, I do believe in miracles. However, the people who want somebody to be there for them either make- up or convince themselves that there is this person in heaven or somewhere looking out for them. They think everything will be okay once they follow their god which most of the time, it might be. I think that's because you started to believe in your god and yourself. When you believe in yourself, everything seems to be better. You're most confident and even if some tragedy falls upon you, you find a optimistic way to view it. I don't hate religions, for some people, I think it's better if they follow one. Besides, people want to try to understand how the world works and make up their own versions of it. Different people have different version and each version is a religion or cult."

** (AN: I hope this doesn't bash any of your religions or anything. I don't mean it that way. I just feel that this is something appropriate for Reyna to say if I'm going to portray her as an Atheist and to be honest, I'm not an atheist myself but I do respect everybody's opinion on the matter of religion. I respect you if you're an atheist, agnostic, or which ever religion/cult you follow.)**

Mitchell applauded his friend. "That is fucking deep. I would do the whole standing ovation thing if I'm not already standing. You just have to watch out for something. I'm Christian, bro."

Reyna shrugged. "That's cool. I'm not bashing you guys or anything. I respect you as a Christian. I don't care whatever religion you are or whatever, I'd still like you the same."

* * *

"New York's not safe anymore." Cat told Nico as they took their seats in a coffee shop. "It's going to happen again."

"Shit." Nico frowned. "No, are we too late? If it's going to happen sometime, it has to be today. It's perfect. Jason and Piper are out of the way again. They are probably finding answers in California and it won't be long until they got a few answers they needed and the world would know more than the Shooter planned. It's better to act when they're still ignorant.

"Better off be stupid than being smart." Cat chucked. "It's funny but true. Everybody tells you you're better off being clever. You can always pretend to be dumb but you can never pretend to be smart if you're actually stupid. False. Once you got your knowledge, you can't exactly pretend you don't know it. It's in your brain. You can't forget about it."

Nico nodded. "Fair enough. Where are they going to attack next?"

Cat shrugged. "Anywhere where their target is. I don't know who's the target."

Nico narrowed his eyes. "We don't know something. That's bad."

"I guess." Cat sighed. "We'll probably figure it out soon though. I mean, we have to. We should be on top of this game, one step ahead of the Shooter like how we wanted so we formed this alliance."

"Excuse me, here is your blueberry cheesecake." A waiter interrupted their conversation to hand them a piece of cake.

"We didn't order that." Cat pointed out. "We already got our coffees which we called."

"I know," The waiter smiled. "Somebody anonymous bought it for you. I think somebody has a crush on you."

"On who?" Nico asked. "There's two of us here, different genders."

"Exactly. If anybody, won't they think we're on a date?" Cat raised her eyebrows. "That is strange to send cakes to a person on a date."

"Bro, we aren't on a date." Nico added quickly. "We're fucking friends, Cat. What the hell?"

Cat laughed. "It's a theory people can form. Don't worry Death Boy, I don't like you at all."

"Just enjoy your cake." The waiter told them. "It's rude to give it back."

"Whatever." Cat smirked as the waiter went away. "And that, Nico, is what happens when you have admirers. You get free cake."

"How do you know it's not for me?" Nico complained.

"I don't think anybody would have a crush on a guy who spends half of his life studying about dead people."

"Hurtful!" Nico frowned. "I don't study dead people all the time. I just like visiting the graveyard. It's calm and quiet there."

"Sure." Cat rolled her eyes as she took her fork and stabbed a part of the cheesecake.

"Wait!" Nico knocked Cat's fork out of the way. "How do you know it's not poison? It's dodgy to me."

Cat grumbled. "There goes my fork. Thanks, Death Breath. It's obviously not poison. A waiter served it and my admirers won't poison me. They practically worship me."

"Stop being so full of yourself." Nico scolded her. "Go ahead, I'm not responsible if you end up dead, turning blue or something. In fact, I won't even bring you to the hospital."

BANG! Nico and Cat jumped. What on earth was that? A elderly woman screamed.

"GET DOWN!" A waiter yelled. "GET DOWN!" The emergency bell rang and the coffee shop was in chaos. People were desperately trying to get down and hold onto their closed ones while protecting themselves. The woman who screamed had a tough time getting down while shivering from shock.

"What the hell?" Cat whispered. "I don't see anything."

"Gunshot?" Nico guessed.

BANG! This time, it was closer to Cat and Nico. They can see the bullet landing next to them. Thank god it didn't actually hit one of them. However, it hit some glass cups which scrapped Nico's skin causing him to bleed.

"Holy shit!" Cat swore as she saw Nico's wounds. "Need a bandage?"

"I'll be fine." Nico said roughly. "Listen, I just figured it out. They're after us."

"How can they?" Cat's face showed confusion. "We aren't even suppose to be their victims! We have nothing to do with them and we just stayed out of the picture the whole time! I was careful to stay outside!"

BANG! This time, the bullet shot Cat's fallen cheesecake. It exploded into little pieces which fell over Cat's face and the floor. "My cheesecake!" Cat whimpered.

"What do you want?" The manager of the coffee shop stood up trembling. "Money?"

Neither Cat or Nico could see the person firing the bullets but they both knew that it's probably masked.

"To finish business my boss ordered me to finish." The person replied gruffly and shot another bullet which Nico and Cat scrambled away to avoid it.

"Shit, they are really after us." Cat confirmed. "Run. Fucking run. Run to save your life. Don't give a damn about me or anybody else. Get the hell out of here, Nico."

"Got it." Nico nodded. They both count silently to three and sprinted out of the coffee shop. They could hear bullets being fired behind them but at this stage, they couldn't afford to look back and see what's damaged. They just ran as fast as they could hoping they'll be alive the next moment.

"Frank's house!" Cat called to Nico. Frank Zhang's house is closet to the coffee shop and Cat figured out it's their nearest house they might be safe in. She was never close to Frank but she knew Nico was sort of friends with him. If they showed up at his door in the stage they're in now, Frank would probably let them inside and offer them some kind of hospitality.

Both of them jumped over Frank's gates and stomped over his neatly trimmed lawn leaving dirty footprints everywhere. Frank's grandmother wouldn't be pleased but this was life or death. Breathlessly, Cat rung the bell impatiently.

Cat could hear footsteps coming down the stairs slowly. Ugh, neither Frank nor his grandmother must have thought it's urgent which it is. The gunman could have followed them both into Frank's house and if that did happen, Frank wouldn't be safe either. If Cat was whoever that's in the house, she would be a lot quicker than the person inside is walking. Of course, neither Frank or his grandmother knew that there'll be two kids outside that might just be shot the next second. You can't really blame them for their slowness but Cat was not the most patient person. She groaned as she heard somebody fumbling with them locks the pace of a snail.

"Damnit." Cat heard Frank muttered. "I hate these new locks."

"Hurry up!" Nico urged.

Frank said slowly. "Calm down. It's not like some crazy killer is trying to kill you."

Cat and Nico exchange glances and laughed as the door finally tugged open.

"Holy…" Frank stared at them. "Come inside."

Luckily, Frank's grandmother wasn't around. If she was, she'll fuss over them like they're her dolls. They both got to sit down in Frank's living room as Frank went to get his first aid kit.

"That was close." Cat wiped off a bead of sweat dripping down her face.

Nico closed his eyes. "We're not safe. We don't have anywhere to run to anymore. If it happens again, we'll just have to face it."

* * *

**AN: This chapter is dedicated to _Martin Richard_, _Krystle Campbell_, _Lu Lingzi_ who unfortunately died of the Boston Bombing and all those 170+ people who are injured by it. This chapter is also dedicated to all those people hurt by the Texas Explosion and to those who died in it. (The Guardian says 5-15 people were killed in it and at the moment, I still don't know their names.) This chapter is for those who are hurt emotionally due to anything that might have harmed you like maybe your loved one had just passed away or somebody just teased you and the insult really insulted you. If you know somebody who passed away from anything (war, sunken ship, accidents, disease), this is for them. If you know anybody who's suffering even from the smallest matter, this is for them. I'll be praying for all of you tonight and I hope you know I'm always here for you. My message box is free for you to ask anything or just ask me to pray about something. The Boston Bombing had made me realize even further how precious human life could be. It can just be gone in a simple push or a second. **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	37. Fatal Flaw

**"The truth is never pretty. But the sooner you know, the better. We can live with the lies and fight for what we want." ~ Annabeth Chase**

* * *

"Excuse me, is this the bathroom?" Somebody tapped Piper's shoulder. She was in a nearby McDonalds ordering lunch for her and Jason. Jason was probably still in Percy's dad's apartment watching the Big Bang Theory or something. He was really annoyed that he missed out a lot of episodes when he was in coma.

Piper turned around and saw a girl around her age gesturing towards the door she's in front of. "Yeah, but it's really dirty inside. I don't think you would want to go inside that one. Try the one in Starbucks instead. It's cleaner."

"Thanks." She said stiffly. Her accent was rich and exotic. Piper recognized it but she didn't know where she heard it before? A TV show? The girl was gorgeous herself. She reminded Piper of somebody she couldn't recall either. She had long, dark hair tumbling down her shoulders. Her eyes were a pretty shade of hazel and she had rosy lips. She had a Mediterranean complexion similar to Piper but her skin tone was olive.

"I'm Piper." Piper introduced herself. The girl is just so damn familiar. Piper was sure she saw her before. Maybe if they chatted a bit, she might realize who she is.

"Lana." The girl said. **(AN: Okay, I know none of the Hesperides names are Lana but it's a bit odd for like people nowadays to be called Erytheia or something. I mean, I know Poseidon and the parents are like ancient greek god/goddess names but yeah, they're probably more common.)**

Piper suddenly realize who Lana is. It hit her like a meteor. At the same time, Piper remembered something. It happened a week before the Shooting happened. She was exchanging books at her locker during break time when she noticed Ethan Nakamura in the principal's office.

"Close this school immediately!" Ethan told the principal inside, loud enough for people outside like Piper to hear. "I told you, it's not safe!"

"Calm down, Nakamura. You have no evidence and do you suppose I take you seriously?" The principal asked crisply.

"You're lucky I warned you." Ethan said. "Don't say I didn't tell you. You have to suffer the consequences. I'll be dead by the time it happened. They're after me other people in Goode High, including a teacher."

"Who?"

"I'm not telling you that. It's classified." Ethan said firmly.

The Principal wasn't pleased with that answer. "I'm your principal. Nothing is classified from me."

"This is, though." Ethan insisted. "In fact, you should open your eyes. A lot of things are happening and you're seeing nothing. That would lead to the doom of this school. I'm telling you, a tragedy would happen within this year."

"I'm afraid I would have to write it off as a lie for now until you provide sufficient evidence." The principal said.

"Fuck you!" Ethan cried. Students don't normally swear in front of the principal, let alone swear at him. People who heard him turned towards the door and grinned at it. Sure, the principal was alright but sometimes he can be a dick. It's about time somebody swore at him. "You're such a bastard sometimes. Screw that, you're a fucking bastard all the time. Why can't you listen to me for once? It's fucking serious! I'm not trying to hurt you, it's actually helping you."

"Calm down." The principal said raising his voice slightly. "And please drop that vulgar language. Those words are not welcomed in my office."

"Wash my mouth with soap." Ethan taunted. "You're mad for not listening to me. What kind of principal doesn't want the best for his school?"

"What's this huge racket?" Zoe frowned as she joined Piper into eavesdropping Ethan's conversation.

Piper shrugged. "Ethan is totally convinced that this school isn't safe and wants to close it down. The principal isn't budging though."

Zoe sighed. "Boys. They're so immature. Why on earth wouldn't the school be safe?"

"Not all boys are like that." Piper said defensing the other gender. "Some of them are actually pretty cool."

Zoe tutted as she shook her head. "Nasty creatures. I wanted to be enrolled into an all girls school but then I won a scholarship here so my mother made me come here. If I had my way, I'd be joining Artemis' hunt."

Artemis' Hunt is another high school in New York. It's not exactly the rivals of Goode High but they do have a few 'friendly' competitions that lead to severe injuries. Actually, they are considered to be sister schools but both schools think they're better than one another.

Piper laughed. "You said that like a bajillion times before. Besides, you get on pretty well with Percy."

Zoe smiled wryly. "He used to be like every other guys but then he did something for me which might have made him a teensy bit better than the rest of the guys. He proved himself worthy. Don't get me wrong, he still is a jerk.

"How about your dad?" Piper pointed out. She had a really close relationship with her father.

Zoe sniffed. "Loathe him. He betrayed me. I still have no idea why my sisters like him though. I guess they saw sticking around him as an advantage."

"What happened?" Piper asked softly. She was always friends with Zoe but never actually got to talk about their families. Zoe liked to steer away from talking about hers and Piper didn't usually press on. However, she felt more fascinated about Zoe's family than before. Everybody knew she didn't have a great relationship with them but nobody actually knew what happened.

"I don't like to talk about it." Zoe's face turned crimson as she shifted her foot nervously. "Sorry, it's touchy."

"Oh, it's alright." Piper nodded hating herself for not being as persistent as she wanted to be. "I understand."

Zoe beamed at her as she said coldly, as usual. "Good. So, how did you do on your science project?"

There got to be something between Zoe and ..Lana. Lana is her family and Zoe never talked about her. Piper never seen Lana before but they looked so alike they got to be sisters. However, the memory of Ethan yelling at the principal bugged her. Did Ethan knew? Ethan did die in the Shooting but how would he knew? Why would he go to school if he knew he's going to die?

"You're Zoe Nightshade's sister, aren't you?" Piper smiled. "She was my friend."

"Zoe? Zoe is not my sister. I don't know her." Lana replied icily, just as Zoe would have.

"But you guys look so alike!" Piper protested. "If you're not twins, you got to be sisters."

"False." Lana denied. "We may have the same blood but I don't know her. She's gone."

Piper frowned. What was that suppose to mean? Are they related or what? "Zoe Nightshade." She tried again. "New York, Goode High. She died in the Shooting. I'm sorry about that. You got to know her. She's that kid who absolutely hates guys."

"Whereas I'm not so sorry that she died." Lana said harshly. "She can do whatever she want and she chose to go down to the Underworld. Her fault. She can't blame me or anybody, especially not our father." Then she laughed stiffly. "Hates boys? Well, that's funny despite what she did with one. Pesky little traitor."

"Sorry, but what? So do you know Zoe or not?"

Lana sighed. "Of course I do, Piper. I just have nothing to do with her, got it? We're different. Look, I have to go now. See you around and don't ever mention that bitch's name again."

* * *

"You look like you've been abducted by aliens and managed to escape Pluto, sneaked onto some UFO and made it back to Earth. I'm guessing I should congratulate you on your arrival back here but I have a feeling that is not what happened." Frank said to Cat and Nico as both of them were reasonably wrapped up.

"We're a target now." Cat explained. "The Shooter's target. We don't know why but he or she is going to send minions to attack us until we give up something the Shooter wants."

"What does the Shooter want?" Frank asked.

Nico laughed. "We don't know. Nobody does. If we did, we can just give the item and nobody would get hurt. I wish I know what the Shooter wanted. That would have made everything so easy."

Frank nodded. "I suppose that made sense. So what are you guys going to do? Look, I thought this whole Shooting investigation was just a leisure activity. Like a mystery that's good to know the truth. However, everything that have been happening since Jason woke up made me question that. The Shooting is not the past. It's going to happen until the Shooter gets whatever he wants. He evidentially don't have the thing he started the Shooting for and he's going to keep going."

"Or she." Cat added. "You know, but yeah, we can use 'he' since saying he and she is pretty confusing."

Frank and Nico exchanged glances. Girls. Ever since the whole movement in 1960 about woman, they tried making everything - even the name of the Shooter - as unisex as possible.

Cat shrugged. "What! It might be a girl."

Nico shook his head. "Okay, whatever. Anyway, Frank, you're right. What is the Shooter trying to do? And what are we going to do?"

Cat smiled wryly. "I don't know what the Shooter is going to do but we'll have to be desperate."

"Desperate?" Frank repeated. "What good would that do? Desperation is messy."

"No." Cat disagreed. "Desperation is what we need. People would do all sorts of crazy things when desperate. If they're put into extreme conditions they won't dream of even being in, they would go ballistic and that's gold. People would show who they really are when in desperation. We can tell which side they're on. Ours or the Shooter's. People are not what they seem and we must trick whoever they really are to come out. When people are desperate, they do the most amazing things that can be considered miracles at some points. They can do the wildest things they never thought they can do. Desperate people shock the world with their actions and that's what we need. A surprise installed for the Shooter."

Nico narrowed his melancholic eyes. "Hmm..that would actually work. I see you're not just an airhead."

"I never was, biatch." Cat's eyes flashed dangerously.

"Woah, calm down guys." Frank held his hands up. "Are you guys actually getting mad at each other or something? Do you normally argue or fight like this?"

Nico laughed. "It's normal, I guess. We quarrel like that all the time. It's nothing really. That barbie does know a few things."

"And that emo needs to learn that he's not the smartest around here. He's got competition." Cat scoffed.

"I'm not emo!" Nico protested. "Why does everybody think I'm emo?"

Frank gestured towards his friend. "Uh, the way you dress, your music taste, your appearance, basically everything about you screams emo. That's cool man, just tell us you're emo. It's not like we're against people like that. We embrace them like how we embrace different races." Frank has always been touchy with racism since his nickname was 'Chinese Canadian Baby Man' at his old school and even though it's not particularly races, Frank viewed it as an insult to his mixed heritage.

"Okay." Nico grumbled. "I would argue that but I'm not going to spend years listing out why I'm not emo. Anyway, I think the Shooter is moving pretty slowly with his progress. Usually, he just runs into somewhere and shoot everybody in his way cuz he's badass. Since Jason woke up, it seems like he's been taking everything slowly and more carefully - not saying he wasn't careful in the first time, we still don't know who the Shooter is so he did a pretty good job - I think he is hinting something to us and laughing at us while we're not getting it. On a planned date, he'll let hell loose and basically bring us something that is a lot worse that the Shooting."

"Fair point for a person with straw in his brain." Cat mused. "Good enough for us anyway."

"So what are we going to do? Should I call Hazel?" Frank asked eager to call his crush.

"Just ask her out already!" Cat said frustrated. "Do you know how annoying it is when you ship a couple and been already thinking of like things you guys would do when you're married and you're just I don't know.. taking things slower than a snail would? It's so darn obvious that you guys like each other. Fucking ask her out already, she'd say yes and you guys can have cute couples which I think if it's a boy, he'd have black hair with Hazel's golden eyes. Don't you think it's a good match? Don't worry, I have an image of it on my laptop, I drew a really good one. If it's a girl, I think it should have-"

"What the…Damn you!" Frank swore probably thinking it's some really bad profanity. Cat and Nico fell into laughters. That's Frank. For some reason, he never said words like 'shit', 'fucking', 'bitch', well, sometimes he did but whenever he wanted to show he's really angry and when people normally use those words, he goes back to saying 'damn', 'drats', 'darn', 'rats' and those kind of things instead. "Us getting married? Shut up! And seriously, you already drew our babies? What are you doing with your life? I'm not asking her out and I don't like her."

"Lies!" Cat taunted him. "Okay, I'll ask her out for you. Hey Hazel, Frank likes you so tonight 7, he'll pick you up in front of your house for your first date."

"You didn't even give her a chance to say no or anything." Frank pointed out.

"She doesn't have to. It's a yes."

"Don't forget to kiss her on your first date!" Nico added chuckling.

Frank made a face at Nico. What is he? One second, he totally hated Cat but in the next, they're teaming up against him. Frank said loudly trying to change the topic. "Okay, so what are we going to do?"

"Well, we're going to make people desperate and I think we would have to pay a visit to Miranda Gardiner, Gwendolyn Barker, anybody who was a victim or was in the Shooting - preferably victim since they probably saw who the Shooter was or have some kind of clue anyway - and try to get as much out of them as soon as possible. We don't know when the Shooter's big attack is and we want to be prepared for it just in case it's really soon."

"Got it." Frank nodded.

"Oh, and don't tell anybody this, not even Hazel." Cat warned. "This is a secret between us. Nobody should know this."

* * *

"I don't know if Cat is really who she says she is." Annabeth explained.

"Why wouldn't she be?" Hazel frowned. "You don't really know her that well, neither do I. I don't think we should be making judgements."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Okay, Cat and Piper had this fight like ages ago and never spoke to each other. They drifted apart and totally hated each other. Suddenly, Cat pops out from nowhere and offers to be friends again. That's cool but isn't that abrupt? Just the other day, they still hate each other but then they're best friends again. Don't you think that's a bit fishy? First of all, I don't really understand why Piper would agree to become friends with her again. It just doesn't make sense but that's Piper. I trust her more than Cat. Besides, it was Cat who wanted to be Piper's friend again and the one who broke their friendship. Cat came out when the whole Shooter thing started coming back into the image. She could have came back when everything's peaceful but no, she has to come when all the secrets are coming unravelled. Does she want something from us?"

Hazel shifted uncomfortably. "Uh, Annabeth? Are you sure you're just not jealous that Cat is probably closer to Piper now?"

"No!" Annabeth cried. "Jealous? No! I don't care if Piper has a billion of friends and like a perfect family. It's Cat. I know something is up. I can tell."

"Sure." Hazel nodded still unconvinced. "Whatever you say."

"It's true!" Annabeth insisted. "I don't know about you but I'm definitely going to find out what's Cat's true intentions."

Hazel bit her lips. "What if she only wants to be friends with Piper."

"Oh so you're taking her side now?"

Hazel felt her friend's forehead. "Are you feeling alright? You don't seem yourself."

Annabeth gave her friend a look. "Oh come on. You got to admit there's something funny about Cat. We have to protect Piper. She's our friend."

"She's all the way in California." Hazel reminded her. "What is Cat going to do to her? Cat's in New York! Maybe she'll send a threatening text saying that she got an embarrassing picture of Piper eating a ham and cheese bagel messily that the press would love to have."

Annabeth stared at Hazel intently with her gray eyes. "No, not like that. Actually, yes. That could be possible. Cat can send a text or something to blackmail Piper. Oh my gods, Hazel, you're a genius!"

Hazel looked around her. "I don't mean that! That wasn't suppose to be like that!"

Annabeth laughed. "Well, I can see it happening. Cat isn't so mysterious that everybody makes her out to be. Maybe she's just somebody like us, finding ways which could help her gain whatever she wants to gain."

Hazel thought of that for a while. "That might actually be true. I'm not sure, though. I don't like where you're going with this."

"The truth is never pretty." Annabeth told her. "But the sooner you know, the better. We can live with the lies and fight for what we want."

"I don't know about you but I think Cat is who she says she is." Hazel shrugged.

Annabeth shook her head. "That might just be your fatal flaw, Hazel. Trusting in people too much but then I did think your fatal flaw would be holding grudges like Nico's and Bianca's."

"Fatal flaw?" Hazel repeated puzzled.

"Every hero has a fatal flaw. Mines is hubris, having too much pride and believe me, I don't like it at all but that's who I am. Thalia's is ambition. Nico and Bianca - both being from the same family has the same flaw, holding grudges. I think Bianca is dealing with it pretty well though. Leo's is probably feeling least important out of other people. That kid hides it with his humor. Jason's…I'm thinking it's probably something along the lines of being too powerful or something. I'm still figuring his flaw and Pipers..ah, maybe it's insecurity? That's one I'm still figuring out too. I still don't know Frank's one yet but maybe it's being underestimating himself if that's possible. Reyna's might be her pride, just like mines but I don't think that's the case."

"So everybody has a fatal flaw and if you're from the same family, it's the same? Like you got to have a different one from other people from different families?"

"No, not always." Annabeth confessed. "Learning other people's fatal flaws can be very powerful. You know what can defeat themselves and you know what's your biggest weakness that can be the ultimate reason of your fall. I'm struggling with hubris and Hazel-"

"What Percy's fatal flaw?" Hazel asked interrupting Annabeth as she blushed, she doesn't usually like interrupting other people but she just realized Annabeth had told her what everybody in their group's fatal flaw is but didn't mention her own ex-boyfriend. Annabeth got to know Percy's, they knew each other as well as they know themselves, if not better.

The question caught Annabeth off-guard. Sure, her relationship with Percy had improved from total strangers but they're still not on the right track. Even now, hearing Percy's name or seeing him pisses Annabeth off. Why is this world is hard anyway? Why can't Annabeth keep a teensy secret with Percy knowing or finding out for heaven's sake? Ugh, she knew it's kind of her fault but really, Percy didn't have to know about that. Fancy confronting her on Valentine Day. "Uh..well, um.. it's loyalty." She said quietly. "I don't think he knows it yet though. He's way too loyal to his friends. Hazel, what's yours?"

"I don't know." Hazel admitted. "I never actually thought about these things."

Mitchell crept around the corner. "Rachel, why are you back?" He hissed as he saw a red-headed girl in disguise. "I thought you were suppose to stay in Switzerland!"

Rachel glanced at Mitchell and looked away. "Don't look at me like that." She ordered. "People would realize we know each other. Pretend we don't know each other. Stand beside me and don't do anything that would associate us together."

"Um, okay." Mitchell stood beside Rachel and looked up at the blue sky. "Gorgeous weather, isn't it?" He said casually.

"I'm not here to small talk." Rachel scolded.

Mitchell protested. "Hey! You told me to act like we're strangers and strangers don't talk about personal stuff. They start with the weather, tv shows, anything they might have in common. So, have you seen Game of Thrones lately? Man, that new episode-"

"I don't care what happens in Game of Thrones!" Rachel snapped. "Okay, update me on what's happening around New York."

"Didn't your boss already tell you everything?" Mitchell said, his tone turning into a sneer but wasn't exactly as mean-spirited as he hoped it would be.

Rachel sighed. "You're pathetic, Tanaka. Almost as useless as your step sister. Goddamned it, why would my boss tell me these things! You know what it's like. You get the instructions and you have absolutely no guidance at all. You have to find a way to achieve the fricken goal. I'm enlisting you to help me and you better do."

"What if I don't?" Mitchell asked. "I'm getting sick of you, you know. You begged me to help you and I agree. I didn't agree to be treated like shit."

"I'm not treating you like shit!" Rachel argued indigently. "God, I'm just asking you to update me. That's all. It's not hard. A baby can do it."

"So why don't you enlist a baby to help you?" Mitchell asked boldly. He's quite shock of his braveness. Usually, he just does what he's told and that's exactly how Drew was able to manipulate him for years. His newfound boldness seem to come out of nowhere and Mitchell knew he only gets this angry if he's really pissed.

"Fuck off." Rachel frowned. "I don't even know why people keep you alive. You're a prick."

"Says the bitch! You're probably the next victim so watch out, Dare." Mitchell huffed and walked away.

"Wait!" Rachel cried as Mitchell turned back and looked at her expectantly. "Okay okay, I need your help. I'll be sugar sweet to you, is that okay? God, boys these days are so hard to please.

"Well, I'm not telling you anything." Mitchell told her quietly. "I'm not on your side. I'm not obliged to helping you or the Shooter or anybody. I'm neutral."

"Does that explain why you're being so cosy with Reyna?" Rachel smirked. "I do know that. I'm not completely clueless."

"We're both after the same thing and we're helping each other. Got a problem with that? It's called teamwork and it's actually efficient. We found some dirt on Drew you don't know about."

"Or do I?" Rachel cocked her eyebrows.

"Stop! I'm not falling into a traps you have set for me to let any information out." Mitchell said firmly. "Please don't make me wear ugly shoes." He added in a soft whimper barely heard.

"What?" Rachel frowned.

"Nevermind."

"I see you're still under Drew's influence." Rachel nodded. "She still scares you, doesn't she? Even dead, she haunts you. She made you wear those fugly orthodontist Shoes of Shame when you crossed her and you hated that. So fragile, Mitchell. Still loathing your step-sister behind her back even when she's gone. You'll be easy."

"I won't." Mitchell gulped biting his lips. "I swear," He stammered. "I'm not that simple to get to."

* * *

**AN: Sorry if this seems to drag on forever, I'm hoping to finish this story in the same day as I started it for like a year sort of thing :P Don't worry, there'll be more action and it'll be more fast-paced soon! xx hehe, so Annabeth doesn't trust Cat, hmm..that should be interesting!**

**Ooh, what are your favourite names from around 1890-1910? For english, we have to write a story set around that time and I'm still stuck on names haha. I'm thinking of some pretty but unique (like not too common or anything) names... :3 **

**~Kisses, Emily**


	38. Guilt

**"Everybody's going to die anyway. No matter if it's when you're 100, when you're 60, tomorrow, anytime. Your life is going to end. Everybody knows that. You know that, so why don't you end your life faster? That might be the same reason other people don't kill themselves before they're due to die. They know even though they're going to be gone, they can do something before going away. They can make a change" ~ Nico Di Angelo**

* * *

"We know Mitchell's the next victim. Are we going to tell him that?" Nico asked.

"No!" Cat cried. "Dude, no! Do you want somebody to tell you things like 'oh yeah, you're going to die soon.' That's ridiculous! Would he even believe us? That's rude, Nico. Besides, the Shooter won't appreciate it and we might be the next victims instead of Mitchell. I think the Shooter's little stunt was a warning to tell us we should keep our mouths shut. We had nothing to do with the Shooting so I don't think he had a problem with us investigating. He just didn't want us to be a loudspeaker broadcasting information to everyone."

"We could be saving lives!" Nico protested. "You know those big boards people write what they want to do with their lives on them? Some people want to get married, some want ten kids, some want to go to outer space but like on every board, somebody wrote to save a life. Don't you want to save somebody's life? We could be saving Mitchell's if we tell him."

"Telling him wouldn't guarantee that he would still be alive. It might even bring the day he's suppose to die sooner." Cat argued. "We're not telling Mitchell under any circumstances. He might have a chance to stay alive if we don't. Think of it this way. If you knew you're going to die anyway, would you still follow onto the hope knowing you can be alive? No! You're going to die so why don't you just kill yourself sooner? There's no difference. Well, actually there might be less pain involved which would seem a better way to die."

"Everybody's going to die anyway. No matter if it's when you're 100, when you're 60, tomorrow, anytime. Your life is going to end. Everybody knows that. You know that, so why don't you end your life faster? That might be the same reason other people don't kill themselves before they're due to die. They know even though they're going to be gone, they can do something before going away. They can make a change. Maybe Mitchell would realize he better use his time here - which I'm afraid might not be long - to actually do something that would change this world." Nico said.

Cat pursed her lips. "Do you know Mitchell well?"

"No? To be fair, I don't really know everybody that much except for Percy. I'm not a people's person. Look, I don't even know people in our group very well."

"Exactly!" Cat smiled triumphantly. "So how do you know Mitchell would take the piece of news well? Sure, he know he's going to die but he probably expect that to be when he's over sixty. He probably wants to die of natural death. We're all just teenagers. Everybody expect us to live a long life. Nobody really wants to know that they might die the next second. A meteorite can crash onto earth and you're the victim. There can be a drunk driver and you're just crossing the road when it's green light but then you're dead because you can't see the car. You could be shot, poisoned, killed in all kinds of way. Nobody wants to know that, do they? Mitchell probably has some kind of a concept on this - that he can die any moment - but didn't really take it that seriously."

Nico sighed. "We're going nowhere, you know? I don't care what kind of shit you're going to say, but I'm telling Mitchell. He has the right to know."

"Information is power. You know that, Nico. What is he going to do after you tell him besides freaking out? Right, he's going to try to avoid it. He can't, he can't avoid something the Shooter wants to be done. Once he know, the Shooter would probably kill him in a more gruesome way than he would have giving that he holds information. And he's another scenario. What if he goes and tell the police? Hey, it isn't everybody you know that somebody wants to kill you and you have the vague idea of who that somebody is. The police will get involved and that's the last thing we want."

Nico shrugged. "He has the right to know. If you have cancer or something that can't be saved in any way and you're going to die in six months, the doctor would consult with your closed ones to discuss whether they should tell you or don't tell you at all so you can live your last months as a normal person. Would you want to know? Obviously, you would. It's your body, it's you. It's the same as you withholding information about Mitchell and he needs to know."

"Fine!" Cat threw her arms wide. "Whatever. You can tell him but I'm not responsible for the consequences. You know it's stupid yet you do it. What kind of idiot does that? Besides, it's not all about Mitchell. The world doesn't fucking revolve around should also care about other people and ourselves. The Shooter clearly told us not to go around giving people little hints and information but that's exactly what you're doing. He already fired bullets at us to keep our mouths quiet. What do you think he'll do next? It's not only to you, it's to me too since we sort of work together. It's not all about you either. You're so selfish."

Nico frowned. What? Why the hell is Cat making such a big fuss about everything? Women..they're so hard to decipher. One moment they can be perfectly tolerable but the next, they're going ballistic on you. However, nobody has ever called him selfish. Okay, he can be a teensy bit selfish. Maybe more than that but nobody says that to his face. "Okay. You know what? If I'm so selfish, we shouldn't work together anymore. I can't even stand being in the same room as a bitch, I'm definitely not going to work with one. You can take you and your ego out of my sight."

"Okay." Cat stomped out of the room. "Have a nice life, Di Angelo."

* * *

"We've been looking through Percy's dad's stuff for ages and really, we haven't found anything good." Piper complained. "What's the point of this anyway?"

Jason shrugged. "Trust me, I would love to know too."

"Do you want to stop searching for a while? Maybe head down to the beaches? The Malibu sunset is gorgeous. The sky is also very clear tonight. We can lay down on the boardwalk and watch the stars if you like. I know one which isn't far away and people won't mind if we just lay there for hours." Piper suggested not as subtlety as she hoped it'll be.

Jason frowned. "But we aren't suppose to leave this apartment. I don't think we can. That'll be like against the rules."

"There aren't any rules here." Piper told him. "Percy's dad can't control us or anything. Come on, it'll be fun."

"Risky."

"Dangerous." Piper's eyes gleamed. "But I like it. It'll be thrilling."

Jason's blue eyes met Piper's daring kaleidoscopic ones. He did wanted to go with Piper. He thought it'll be nice, the whole beach sunset and watching the stars but isn't that what couples do? They aren't even dating. Piper sort of had a boyfriend. Jason was afraid that he might attempt anything Piper find inappropriate as Sky already had her. He didn't want to mess things up. Besides, he wasn't so sure about disobeying Percy's dad. Sure, if what he said is law, they would have already broke it in numerous occasions but like always, he didn't feel comfortable doing something somebody specifically told him not to do. "I don't know if we should."

Piper grabbed his hands which made Jason's heart jump. "Please! I just want to get out of this place."

"Hey, how's Sky?" Jason asked quickly trying to take Piper's mind off it and for his own curiosity's sake.

Piper shrugged. "He's alright. He woke up. Unlike your coma, he remembered everything perfectly. He's trying to get used to walking and those daily activities with his injuries. He should be out of the hospital pretty soon."

"Did you see him when we were briefly in New York?"

"No." Piper shook her head. "He was still in coma."

"You guys dating?" Jason asked.

Piper bit her lips. "I'm not sure actually. He did ask me to go to the Valentine party together but I'm not sure if it's actually considered as a date. If we're still stuck here when he's recovered, he said he might come down to Cali to pay us a visit. Hey! Stop changing the subject, sparky. Do you want to go outside or not?"

"Percy's dad won't appreciate that." Jason protested. "It's not that bad here."

"Oh for god's sake. Do I have to use force to push you outside?"

"You can't. I'm stronger than you." Jason pointed out.

Piper cocked her eyebrow. "Really? Let's see if that's true."

"Come at me." Jason laughed. The idea of Piper pushing him out was funny, it was in his perspective anyway. Last time Piper tried pushing him to do something, that didn't work out well.

Piper pouted. "I'll ditch you here if you don't come."

* * *

"What's the deal with you and Jennings?" Mitchell's rubbed his eyes sleepily as a familiar domineering voice demanded.

"Drew?" Mitchell cried in shock. "What the hell? You're supposed to be dead! Is this real?"

"Oh joy." Drew yawned. "Can't the dead come back to pay a little visit to their dear step-brothers in their dreams? Psh, don't act so shock. It's not uncommon. Haven't you watched all those horror movies?"

"Those are movies and no.." Mitchell admitted quietly. "You know they creep me out and give me nightmares."

"So what's the deal with you and Jennings?" Drew repeated.

"What deal?" Mitchell frowned. "Drew, it's cool that you aren't exactly dead or whatever but please, get the fuck out of my dream."

"I hate living people like you. You think you can order somebody dead like me around just cos you're alive and I'm not. You think you're so powerful but really, you're not." Drew laughed.

"What are you talking about?" Mitchell pinched himself hoping that he'll wake up from his Drew nightmare. Sure, he guessed he felt sad that Drew's dead but it's simply not pleasant seeing she popping up in your dream.

"Whatever. So do you like Reyna?" Drew demanded.

"Woah!" Mitchell put his hands up defensively. "Who said there's something between us? Dude, no! She's just my friend!"

"Just my friend." Drew mimicked. "That's what they all say."

"She's my friend. I like her as a friend. What's wrong with that? There is something in the world that is called friends. You can have friends from the opposite gender and like them in a way that you don't want to date them. Surprise? What's up with you girls? You find love in everything."

"I'm a daughter of love." Drew snapped. "It's my nature."

"Technically, you can't be a daughter of love. Love isn't a women, it's not even a person. You can't be a daughter of a theme, it's like-"

"Shut up!' Drew cried. "You're impossible."

"Why are you in my dream?" Mitchell asked grumpily.

Drew smiled. "Maybe because you miss me so much you're now dreaming of me? I feel honored."

Mitchell glared at her. "Don't flatter yourself. If you're still alive, I would kill you again. I praise whoever that managed to kill you."

"I'm not flattering myself. It's the truth. You don't hate me like you pretend to. There's a reason you're curious to who killed me. You want to find that person." Drew smirked.

"Exactly. I want to throw them a party." Mitchell snorted. "They deserve it. The bitch is dead."

"Funny you said that." Drew dared him. "Go check my Facebook page when you wake up."

Mitchell frowned. "Why? Am I even friends with you?"

Drew shrugged. "Just do it. Quit whining. And hun, wear deodorant. Your stink waves travel to the land of dead."

"Now that you're gone, you can't force me into wearing those ugly shoes. You can't make me do anything and I'm not going to obey you."

Drew sighed. "Wait till you die. I won't make things pretty for you, you bastard."

Mitchell raised his eyebrows. "Don't worry. I'm planning on staying alive for quite a while."

For some reason, Drew found this funny and started to giggle. "Ah, the living. So stupid."

"Stupid?" Mitchell repeated indigently. "At least I'm smart enough to stay fucking alive!"

"Fun fact. I died because I'm too smart." Drew waved her hands.

"Nobody dies of that!" Mitchell stared at Drew. "You're flattering yourself again. And here's another fun fact for you. You just got another D on your report card. I don't think that's exactly the ingredients of being smart."

"Once, people thought Albert Einstein was stupid. Bill Gates dropped out of school. We're talking about the most intelligent people over here." Drew reminded him.

"Drew, you aren't like those people. You perfectly know that. You can't get a D and somehow become the world's smartest person or something." Mitchell shook his head.

* * *

Clarisse's hard eyes fell upon a hooded person. To be honest, she doesn't know who's hiding behind the mask but she knew that she wanted to see this person "So Chris.." Clarisse started.

"Yes." If Clarisse could see through the mask, she swore the stranger would be wearing an eerie smile. "I know about him. I know more about him than anybody would including himself. I can offer anything you want about him."

"Good." Clarisse breathed. She couldn't believe she's actually doing this. Putting her trust into a freaking stranger. That's what desperate people do, don't they? They would do anything to get what they want and Clarisse is desperate for the blood of Chris' killer. The Shooter deserves the worse punishment ever offered to somebody, even if it's absolutely inhumane. That's what the Shooter gets. That's what they get for shooting Clarisse's boyfriend. They will feel her wrath. Did they know how hard it was to get Chris to even notice her? It took days. It took even longer for them to become more than friends and for Chris to fall for her. It wasn't hard for Clarisse to like him. She never had a crush on any guys before. You can't have love in between your fights. Chris is different. He is just amazing and Clarisse couldn't get enough of him. Just like that, he's gone and after years, Clarisse still haven't forgotten about him. Who does the Shooter think they are? "What do I have to do for it?"

The stranger paced back and forth. "I actually have a few things in mind that would be perfect for you. I need somebody like you. Strong, fearless, willing to do anything. Perfect."

"So what is it?" Clarisse demanded.

"I'll let you know later." The stranger decided. "I'll tell you anything you want to know about Chris now and you'll pay me later."

"What if I don't want to do that thing you would make me do?" Clarisse challenged. "Tell me what I have to do first."

"I still don't know." The stranger admitted. "Alright, I'll make you a deal. If I spill whatever you want on Chris, you have to do be a favor but I'll have five of them for you to choose. I'll call you when the time is right. Don't worry, I'll make sure all of them are easy and simple. I'll make sure anybody can do it so you can definitely do them."

"Fair enough." Clarisse nodded. "Deal. So who killed Chris? Why did they kill Chris? Why not somebody else? Did Chris do anything to offend to shooter? Did the shooter just hate Chris or something? Is Chris alive or is he really dead? Did Chris know he was going to die? Was Chris-"

The stranger held his or hand up to pause Clarisse. "So many questions. They will all be answered in due time. You're rather curious, aren't you?" The stranger chuckled. "I like you. Maybe I'll give you some free pieces of information later."

Clarisse snarled. "You're stalling. Just tell me the goddamned information already!"

"Fine." The stranger snapped. "Okay. Here's something. The Shooter didn't kill Chris. Big surprise? I think so. You thought the Shooter killed him ever since he died."

Clarisse stared at the hooded figure trying to piece the puzzle pieces together. "So the Shooter..oh god."

"I thought that would be your reaction." The stranger smirked.

Clarisse's lips turned into a sneer. "Actually, that's not too surprising. Nothing like those big twists they have on TV shows. The police did mention that Chris might have died of shock. It isn't everyday somebody comes with a gun and all that kind of crap."

The stranger sighed. It's a loud one, evident to point out Clarisse was missing something. "Can't you see? Chris killed himself."

Clarisse frowned. "Impossible! Now you're telling me lies, aren't you punk? He would not kill himself. He's not even fucking suicidal! He is a perfectly normal, happy kid."

"He doesn't tell you everything." The stranger told her.

"He does! We tell each other everything. I know everything about him and vice versa. We don't hide anything from each other." Clarisse insisted. "Are you trying to tell me lies so I can do those favors for you?"

"He hides the worst part of his life from you. He doesn't want you to know. He doesn't want you involved in it. He didn't think you can handle it."

Clarisse laughed, it came out more nervous than it should be. "Handle it? What do you mean? I can handle everything! I can handle liars like you."

"Can you really? Can you, Clarisse?" The stranger questioned. "Nobody knows the answer better than you do."

Clarisse narrowed her eyes stubbornly. "Yeah, I can handle anything. I can take down anything I want."

"Chris loves you." The stranger said softly. "He didn't tell you the full truth to protect you because he loves you. He didn't want to tell you that he was going to kill himself because he knew you would be against you. You would do anything to prevent that from happening and during that moment, you would be blinded by your anger to make the right decision. Can't you see? Chris needs to kill himself. It's for him and for you. He loves you Clarisse.

"Lies!" Clarisse barked loudly. Even though she sounded tough, her face told the truth. Clarisse's face was white with shock, she was shuddering trying to convince herself that it wasn't true. She couldn't believe this stranger, could she? "And I don't see. Yeah, you know why? It's all bullshit! Get away from me you creep and don't expect anything from me!"

"We had a deal, remember? I told you about Chris. I swear, it's all the truth. You have to do something for me now."

"No." Clarisse shook her head. "I won't. I asked for the truth, not a bunch of crap."

"You know it's the truth." The stranger taunted. "Haven't you noticed the signs Chris tried sending you? His occasional reference to death, he did tell you he felt trapped once didn't he? You thought he was trying to scare you and played along."

"How did you know this?" Clarisse demanded. "And okay, if I believe you, tell me, what made Chris want to kill himself?"

"Pressure." The stranger said simply as if it explained everything. "You never hung around his friends. You didn't know. His friends have influenced him greatly. They're not like your friends. They aren't what society would call the good sort. They aren't the stereotypical 'friends' who shove drugs in front of your face and start taunting you and making you take them. They aren't the type who would backstab you. They aren't those type of bad. They aren't even really that bad. They just believe different things. They think that New York is too superfial which I might agree myself. They wanted to take down this fake society. They didn't want the top of this society to be a bunch of shallow, phony, pretty people who are all the same and would do anything to stay on top. They wanted a new world. They wanted to see some kind of change that they like. Many people agree with the whole New York being too fake and needed to change idea but none of them really had the courage to do it. What if they lost this war? The people on top would treat them worse and everything would backfire on them. Chris was one of the people who doubted it."

"Why didn't he tell me about it?" Clarisse asked. "I would have supported him and his friends. I hate people who say they're something but they're really not. What does this have to do with the Shooter anyway?"

"Nothing. Chris just saw it as a perfect chance to escape from his world. He didn't want to leave you but it was his only way. He didn't want to choose between you and his friends anymore. He probably would have chose you though since love conquers everything but he won't be able to face the shame knowing he let his friends down."

"I said I would have fully supported it!" Clarisse gritted her teeth in frustration. "Why? We could move to Antarctica or something where he wouldn't have face all that guilt crap!"

"His friends were also cowards. All their ways of creating the world they wanted was back-handed. They don't have the courage either to stand up without any shields protecting them. Chris knew you would hate them. You hate cowards. You would have fought without any kind of protection for something you believed you. If you met his friends, sooner or later, you guys would rip each other apart. Oh Clarisse, you go somewhere else to escape from your guilt. You can move to Pluto and you would still feel ashamed. Your guilt catches up to you no matter where you are."

* * *

Mitchell woke up with beads of sweat trailing down his neck. Did he really talked to Drew in his dream? Was he even crazy enough to dream of his dead step-sister? What the hell?

The first thing that caught his eye was his laptop. Didn't Drew said something about checking her Facebook page? He wasn't a big fan of doing what his step-sister order him to do but he felt like he should. Drew did die and it would be like some kind of a tribute. Even though he hated Drew, it is nice to do something for a dead person.

Mitchell turned on his laptop and went on Drew's Facebook page. He still couldn't believe he's actually doing this. Really? When Drew was still alive, he would have done anything to rebel Drew's orders. Maybe Drew's death did have an impact on him after all.

After scrolling past a few posts such as 'I wonder what she's doing in hell' or 'tbh Drew honey, you deserve a special place in hell', one of those posts that was against Drew caught Mitchell's eye.

**Chelsea Tait:**

'The bitch is dead.'

The bitch is dead. The words rang through Mitchell's head repetitively. Wasn't that what Mitchell said to Drew during his dream? Drew seem to have known Chelsea posted that on her wall. Why did Drew want him to check that? To show him that she is still up to date on everything even when she's dead.

Mitchell was lost in thoughts, he didn't even hear his father telling him to come down for breakfast. What could he do? Did Drew mean something? Was Drew just toying with him again to scare him? This was complicated. Without further ado, he took out his phone and called Reyna. It was Drew related and they are going to study this together.

* * *

**AN: Sorry I haven't updated last week but I was super busy with history projects and science exams! Ugh, I'm like 500% done with school now. I just want to stay in my bed with my laptop and food aha. Also, sorry if I mislead you into thinking this is a Jasper story. I mean yes, this will be a Jasper story but it won't only focus on the relationship between Jason and Piper. There would be other elements woven into this and I am so sorry there isn't really any big Jasper things yet but I'm still trying to figure out where they would go. However, I do guarantee that this is a Jasper story. I just had to put Jason and Piper in the character slot things cos something has to be there ahaha :P**

**Ooh what are your favourite lines in this story? My friend's favourite line from this chapter was:**

**'Your guilt catches up to you no matter where you are' ~ The stranger**

**~Kisses, Emily**


	39. Repeating History

**"Those who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it." ~ George Santayana**

* * *

"Poseidon was best friends with Zeus and Hades all the way until high school but now they're like sworn enemies?" Piper repeated. "Wow, that's a bit harsh."

Jason laughed. "Gods Piper. I told you this millions of times before. Yeah, it's a bit extreme I guess."

Piper smiled. "I think I know what Percy's dad is up to. You see, he knows what we're doing and he wants to help tend to repeat their mistakes if they haven't learnt about it in history. I think he knows who the Shooter is and it's somehow connected to his past."

Jason frowned. "Are you sure, Pipes? It seems pretty unlikely. The Shooting only happened in the recent years and his past - that's ages ago. If the Shooter had a problem with Percy's dad, wouldn't he just do something to him? He won't go to Goode High. Percy's dad has nothing to do with Goode High. Besides, none of the victims are wasn't hurt in any way."

Piper thought of it for a while. "I don't know but maybe this is an ongoing problem. Only now did the shooter decided to make his move. Maybe he wanted to do this for ages and never got the chance to."

Jason shrugged. "Sounds fair. Maybe it's somebody that Percy's dad knew. So what do we know about his past from digging around his apartment?"

"He met your father Zeus and Nico's father Hades in a park when they were three. They were practically inseparable since. They went to the same kindergarten, primary school, middle school and high school. If they didn't drift apart in high school, it is most likely they would have went to college together. In kindergarten, those three were always more popular than other. Apparently, those three have some sense of a leader in them. People felt compelled to follow them. The popularity extended throughout their school years. In elementary school, Percy's dad wrote about this really cute girl called Amphitrite. Jason, did you know she was Poseidon's first crush? Gods, they were so cute together! Look at this! In fourth grade, he had his first kiss with her. Sadly, she had to move back to Indiana and they never kept in touch. Aww."

Jason snatched the picture of Poseidon and Amphitrite. "Jesus Piper. You are really into love, aren't you?"

"No I'm not!" Piper huffed almost immediately. "It's just that it's his first crush and his first kiss! Don't you think it's cute? I'm not that type of sappy romantic girl but anybody would find this sweet!"

"If you say so." Jason rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, it's Poseidon's middle school years and oh, that's some years for Hades. He already spent two years trying to get Persephone, this girl in his class. Persephone never really paid attention to him though. In middle school, Hades got pretty fed up with it and literally kidnapped Persephone after school. He locked Persephone in his room with him. Naturally, Persephone got really afraid but they warmed up to each other. Persephone's mother got worried on where her daughter and almost called the cops. Luckily, when Hades' parents found Persephone and returned her back to her mom. It's said that Persephone was banned from seeing Hades again but Poseidon confirmed that they have been meeting secretly. And then there's your dad, Jason. Has he ever told you about Hera?"

"Hera who?" Jason asked blankly.

"It's his first serious girlfriend!" Piper said."Poseidon writes letters to this guy name 'Triton' telling him everything that's going on. I don't know why but the letters never got sent and I found them in this cupboard. Hera is one of those girlfriends who are overprotective and gets jealous really easily. She even got jealous because Zeus was giving directions to somebody else who is obviously too old for him. I guess it's fair though. Your dad has cheated on her a few times and Hera was pretty close to killing them every time."

Jason chuckled. Sounds like his dad alright. "Well, I suppose that's why he never told us about her. I don't think Mother would really appreciate him talking about other women."

Piper laughed. "I guess. I won't like it if my future husband talks about his exes. It's just not right. Your father is an intelligent man."

"He is." Jason agreed. "And he would never let us forget about that."

"Do you know exactly what happened between Poseidon, Zeus and Hades? They seem like such good friends. Like the type of friendship that would never end. What happened?" Piper questioned curiously. "I mean, I just want to know. It's tough for something like that to ever happen."

Jason shrugged. "Beats me. I read a few things of Percy's dad during his high school era though. It seems as if they just drifted apart. You know, they each had their own friends and they grew closer to them instead. Zeus became friendlier with your parents and the popular group. My dad would never let us forget that he used to be extremely popular either. Percy's dad was more into swimming and was all for the swimming team while Hades just had his own thing going on. Like every ending they did have a series of arguments though. I'm guessing those fights still haven't been resolved so our parents never talked to each other. Well, mines never did anyways. Poseidon and Hades remained fairly close after the trio broke up and they seem to be together on something. Maybe a plot against my dad. They seem to have gone out of their way to beat my dad in everything. They were both pissed at him."

Piper nodded. "They argued about everything, didn't they? Once Zeus gained popularity - as in more popularity than he ever had when he fell into the group my parents were in - , he started ditching Poseidon and Hades for the populars. Poseidon and Hades obviously weren't too pleased about it. They told Zeus either they can join the populars, Zeus can quit the populars or the friendship isn't going to work out. Zeus didn't want to lose anything and he loved his new position of power over the school. Sure, he was popular before but not the whole Tristan McLean level."

"Piper, why were your parents so popular?"

Piper grinned. "I guess it's all about the looks and the money. My dad's family were a line of famous Hollywood movie stars and celebrities. It's about the fame. They used to live in Malibu but they decided to send my dad to study in New York - Goode High, for a better education and to lead a less superficial life. In Malibu, everything is about fame and fortune. They hoped for something different here for my dad. However, I'm guessing in New York, people still loved my dad's status and Hollywood background. He is pretty much the golden boy when he first joined the school. I mean, why won't he be? He probably made it to the cover of US Weekly just for being himself while other people even struggle to make it in the school newspaper! And my mom, god she's gorgeous. She's from San Diego, California. Ever since she was a baby, she has been modeling. Sure, she isn't the smartest person out there but really, you can be popular if you're drop dead stunning like her. People just fell in love with her looks and gave her a VIP ticket to Goode High royalty."

Jason smiled. "I can see where you got your looks and fame from then."

"Looks?" Piper blushed. "Gods, no! I'm nowhere as pretty as both of them! I don't even know where all my ugly genes came from. Anyway, back to the topic." She added hastily. "Even I got to agree, my parents aren't the best people to hang around with. Sure, they're popular and with them you're like royalty but they aren't exactly society's role models either. They don't get the best grades but enough to pass the subjects. They broke almost every law there ever is. They drink, they smoke, they even took drugs. They got wasted every weekend and pretended to be sober at school at the time. In country to what my father came to New York for, even they admit themselves that they were the fake. They didn't trust anybody or ever let their guard down. In their world, it's all pretty lies over truths that weren't so pretty. It's all fun and games and lies. Your father fell into that world while Hades and Poseidon still managed to see how it's changing their friend. They tried getting their friend back but once you're inside, you can't get out. When my parents were in their early twenties, they realized what assholes they were. They tried changing themselves but even now, they can be the biggest faggots ever. I still love them though. I don't know about your dad, Jason."

Jason felt a rush to protect his father. His father has not fell into the world of lies or whatever Piper was talking about. Zeus Grace never really had time for Jason but still, Jason loved him. He is his dad. "My dad's great. He doesn't need to be changed in any way."

"I don't know Jason. I really don't and I have no right to judge him but maybe he just hid his ugly side away from you. I know people who do that to others to protect them. I can tell he really loves you though." Piper said softly. "Don't really take notice of what I say though. I barely know your dad."

* * *

"You guys got anything about the victims of the Shooting?" Annabeth asked matter-of-factly.

"No." Leo shook his head. "None of us did. It's too hard. Everybody's giving us versions of what everyone knows. All everybody knows have been published in newspaper. There isn't any secrets like we hope to discover."

Hazel agreed. "If there are any secrets, they kept it."

Frank bit his lips. "Guys, do you know what happened to Cat and Nico?"

"Cat and Nico?" Percy raised his eyebrows. "What the fuck? They aren't going out are they? Hey, Death Boy never told me anything like that! I didn't even know they talked to each other."

Frank looked adamant at the reply and quickly said. "Oh, never mind. It's nothing. They're aren't going out."

"Frank, you aren't telling us something." Grover studied his friend's expression. "I can tell."

"My boy can read people's expression." Juniper gloated proudly as everybody in the room stared at her. Juniper is always very proud of her boyfriend and often boasted about really random things about him.

"Keep your enthuthiasm to yourself." Leo muttered. "But she's right, Frank."

Frank scowled. Out of their friendship group, the kid he least liked would probably be Leo. He is just so fricken annoying and hard to get rid of. Besides, he and Hazel has this whole flirting thing going on and he didn't like it. Hazel is suppose to be his! "I'm just saying they would make a good uh couple." Frank lied as he fidgeted.

"Fidgeting." Annabeth noticed. "Frank, we can keep a secret."

Frank looked around the room nervously. "Please. It's nothing, really. I swear. You don't have to, just continue on with everything. You know, how can we go further with the investigation? We're really going nowhere."

"He's right but I also really want to know about Nico and Cat now." Percy insisted. "Tell us."

"Guys, if he doesn't want to tell us, let him be." Hazel pleaded.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Fine. Still, you guys make a cute couple. Ask each other out already."

Annabeth couldn't help but smile as Frank and Hazel blushed. Who is Percy giving love advice now even though it is pretty obvious. Annabeth wanted Percy back but she also wanted Luke. Life is hard and she didn't want to choose. Percy is perfect but Luke is her first crush. She can't ever forget that.

"Um, alright." Annabeth clapped her hands together to gain her audience's attention. "Guys, I think we should quit looking into every victim. It won't work. It didn't. Let's focus on people who were in the Shooting like some of us but didn't die. Hopefully they can tell us something they didn't tell the reporters."

* * *

"So you're telling me, Chris killed himself." Clarisse took a deep breath and faced the stranger again. When she ran away last time, she couldn't help but think did Chris really suicide? She needs to know the whole truth. She can't run away from this masked stranger. She had to come back to this person.

"Oh yes. Why would I lie to you? I told you it's true." The stranger said gleefully.

"What if I still don't believe you?"

"You already do, dearie." The stranger chuckled and handed Clarisse a few torn pages. "But if you want more proof, here."

Clarisse snatched those pages and gave it a glance. It was written in Chris' handwriting.

I don't know if I can go on anymore. This world is tough but some say it's worth living. It probably is if I'm somebody else. I tried the best I can. I tried pleasing everybody but that's almost impossible nowadays if you're not handsome or rich. I love and loathe this world at the same time. It's just not as simple as everybody made it out to be. It's much more complicated than that and I don't know how to live this. I'm just not enough. Clarisse, God bless her, deserves so much better than me. Who am I? A prawn in chessboard everybody bigger than me is playing. A weak person who can't take anything any longer. A person who is being pushed into insanity. I can feel what going crazy is like. Being mad. Being insane. I am out of this world. This world is not for me and it's better off for me - for everybody - if I just leave it.

The rest of the pages were torn. Clarisse's mouth dropped wide open as she read the words. "Where did you get this?" She breathed.

"Let's just say I have my sources." The stranger sneered. "So, do you believe me now?"

"No, I don't." Clarisse lied. "I need more proof."

"What you see is what you get." The stranger replied. "Clarisse darling, I know you already believe me. You recognize his handwriting don't you? You could tell that he wrote this."

"Maybe somebody forced him to write it." Clarisse insisted.

The stranger laughed. "Really? Do you honestly think that would happen?"

No. Clarisse knew it's a no but she wants more proof anyway. She wants to see how many clues Chris probably left behind and she never took notice of them. "Yeah."

"Honey, this world doesn't need evidence. I'm not offering more proof. Deal with it."

"Fine, then I'm not helping you on whatever you wanted me to help with." Clarisse sniffed.

"We made a deal." The stranger growled. "I gave you information about Chris. It's your choice whether to believe it or not and you chose not to. These are facts. They are legit. It's not my job to make you believe it. I gave you my part of the deal and if you don't give me yours hon, it won't be pretty."

"I asked for information. Information that are real. I didn't ask for lies. You can deny that these are fake information all you want but until you make me believe, they are still lies. Lies to make me do something you want."

The stranger pointed their finger at her. "You know who came up to me to ask for information about Chris? You. You wanted to know. I gave you what you wanted to know. You found me and struck a deal with me. You better bear with me, missy or I can make your life miserable."

"Isn't my life miserable enough? That asshole Shooter took away Chris and Silena who by the way was one of my fucking best friend. Haven't that coward took enough away from me to make me miserable? You can't really do anything to make me feel worse than the Shooter has already done. The only reason I'm living is to deal with that faggot who took away their lives."

"Oh, I'll find a way." The stranger promised. "I will."

* * *

Reyna knocked on Mitchell's door. It was about time to visit him again. Reyna sort of missed him. He did kind of became one of her best friend over the weeks. Jason and Piper are off to California. Annabeth is obsessed with a history paper she had to finish. Hazel and Frank are off doing their own thing. Percy seems to be in another world by himself and Leo is just being Leo. She never actually got a chance to hang out with them and she isn't really that close to other people like Grover.

"Reyna?" Mitchell came out in his pajamas. "What are you doing at this time?"

Reyna shrugged. "I don't know actually. I'm just bored, I guess. I think my family had enough of me staying at home all day."

Mitchell smiled. "Sorry, I can't ask you to come in. My mom is doing her yoga inside and she doesn't want anybody to see her."

"Is your step-father home?"

"Yeah." Mitchell nodded. "Why?"

Reyna chuckled. "Just asking. He's never home."

"Right." Mitchell stepped outside of his house and closed the door. He sat down on the porch bench and signaled Reyna to join him."So the stars look bright today."

Reyna frowned. "Why would you say that?"

"I have to say something or it'll be awkward!" Mitchell explained.

Reyna looked up at the sky. "Fair enough. The stars are pretty."

"You know, Zoe loved stars." Mitchell hesitated and told his friend.

"Zoe who?"

"Zoe Nightshade. She's one of the girls who died in the Shooting."

Reyna bit her lips. "I think I do remember her. I didn't know her very well though. My friends were pretty good friends with her though. I never actually talked to her. Wasn't she famous for going out of the way to avoid guys or something?"

Mitchell laughed. "I suppose so. Well, it really depends on which guy. Believe it or not but she was my best friend in kindergarten. I don't know what happened in elementary but she won't even talk to me. Yeah, that's when she started her streak of hating boys. She wanted to go to Artemis' Hunt elementary school. I swear, I don't think any boys have ever survived talking to her without getting hurt or something. Of course, there's Percy though."

"What does Percy have to do with her? Did they ever dated?" Reyna questioned.

Mitchell shrugged. "I'm not actually really sure about it. I just heard bits and pieces off Drew. I don't even know if Drew is right since half of her gossip are just rumors and lies. I heard that they went on some adventure together. Not that kind of road trip adventures to Indiana or something and not the kind you see on Peter Pan or anything else. I don't think so anyway. It won't be surprising if they went to Tennessee together. Grover was with them. Bianca too. Thalia was the last member of their gang. It was the first year of middle school and Annabeth went missing. They went off to find her. I heard she didn't even get pass the borders of California. I think she was found in San Francisco. However, after that adventure, Zoe seemed to have gained respect for Percy and technically he's the only guy Zoe would ever talk to."

"What about Grover? He's a guy and he was on the adventure too!"

"Grover?" Mitchell bursted out laughing. "He's too shy around girls around that time. I don't think he even spoke to her during the whole thing."

Reyna managed a half smile. "Cute." She felt something touched her hands and looked down. It was Mitchell's hands. He was blushing furiously red.

Did she like Mitchell? Goddamnedit, her love life is fucked up. Reyna didn't even know where it is going now. It was a perfectly romantic night. The sky was clear and the stars were shining brightly at them. Soft breeze were grazing at their skin and Reyna's heart was beating loudly. So loud that she wasn't sure if Mitchell can hear it. To be honest, she never held a guy's hand before. She always wanted to hold Jason's but it never really work out and it probably never will. Mitchell said Leo liked her but she wasn't sure if she liked him back. Sky is cute but she has to keep telling herself it's a crush. He's in college and normally only A-listers date college guys. Reyna is not even close to being an A-lister. Sky would never like him back and now Mitchell obviously do.

Suddenly, Mitchell fell. He collapse onto the ground. The magical touch of their hands were gone just like that.

"Are you okay?" Reyna cried.

"God." Mitchell sputtered.

Okay, Reyna decided, he definitely isn't. "Do I have to call the ambulance or anything?" Reyna propped Mitchell against the bench and rang his doorbell.

"Hey-" Mitchell's step-father opened the door and didn't' even get a chance to finish his sentence as he spotted his step-son clutching his stomach leaning over the bench. Quickly, he rushed to him. "Mitchell! Are you alright! Reyna, take care of him. I'll call the police and oh my god, honey, get out! It's Mitchell!"

"Mitchell darling, are you stuck on a tree again? It's not the far of a climb down!" Mitchell's mother called from inside. "Is it that urgent? I'm doing yoga!"

"Honey, it's important! I think he's been shot! Oh 911? Officers, this is urgent. Yes, no! What the hell? I don't know what exactly happened! Yes! Please!" Mitchell's father hollered at the phone.

"I-" Mitchell choked as blood pour from his chest.

"Mitchell!" Reyna cried. "Get the bullet out!"

The bullet was shot deep into Mitchell's body. Reyna didn't even understand how it happened. It's impossible. They didn't even hear a gunshot or anything. The night was just perfect until the bullet ruined everything. Reyna could hear Mitchell's breath going shallow as the police sirens grew louder. Mitchell's mother rushed outside and was out of control. Reyna was lost in her mind. She couldn't see properly anymore but she could make out that police were rushing towards Mitchell and he was on a stretcher in no time. Mitchell's mother yelled something to her but Reyna didn't remember. She didn't know what to do anymore.

* * *

**AN: Sorry, I know this chapter is way overdue and is shorter than the previous chapters. My macbook broke and I couldn't get it fix until yesterday and I didn't exactly have a lot of time to write this. I'll try to update again next Thursday though and I hope you liked this chapter and haven't gave up on the story yet! I promise to have some big revealing plot kind of thing really soon ;)**

**~Kisses, Emily**


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